Why I Slightly Hate Christmas Time

Okay, I know this may seem slightly sacrilegious, but I want to be honest.  Christmas time kind of drives me crazy.  Don't get me wrong, the idea behind it and it's intended purpose is awesome.  I mean the savior of the world was born--that's something to celebrate.  And I'm not a horrible person, there are other things about Christmas time that I really do look forward to.

 First of all, this:

Because Christmas caroling and wearing ugly spirited sweaters with my friends is the best.

Also this:

 Because my family is amazing and we have some of the best memories together from the holidays. 

This: 

Because what's Christmas without cute, delicious cookies?

Definitely this:

Because it's always good to give back, and one of the things I love most about the holiday's are the feelings of generosity and kindness that fill the air.  

These are all great things, right?  And while Christmas time is great, the fact that it only happens for one month out of every year really gets me.  I feel like we are living in a culture that manages to only be nice, generous, kind, and happy 1/12 of the time, which leads me to believe the spirit of it all must be fake--like some sort of mandatory social obligation or something.  I mean if only one out of every twelve interactions you had with a person was pleasant, you probably wouldn't like that person a whole lot, would you?  I guess that's kind of like my relationship with Christmas time.

Doesn't it always seem like your problems are less important around this time of year?  It's like our society realizes that--WOAH-- we're actually not the only people here, and we put a valiant effort into helping the less fortunate people all around us.  What bothers me is that these less fortunate people are always all around us.  Each and every day presents an opportunity for us to look around and see suffering, and each day presents an opportunity for us to do something about it.  There is always someone who needs to be shown love.  One of the best parts about Christmas time, at least for me, is hearing the amazing stories about how God is loving the whole world through His people, and how He is impacting lives for His glory.  But I am sick and tired of only having these stories highlighted for one month out of the year.  I wish we lived in a society that paid more attention to these things rather than the things that, ultimately, are pointless.

Now don't get me wrong here, I am absolutely guilty of getting caught up in the Christmas hype, doing nice things, and then completely forgetting about it come January.  I wish I was better about spreading "Christmas cheer" all year long, but I'm just not.  It's something I will always be working on, though. So, what do you guys think?  What are some things you love about Christmas time?  Anything that drives you crazy about it?  What are your ideas to keep the Christmas cheer going even after the holidays have passed?

With love,

Tay

II Timothy 4:7 #love

Oh just one more thing... 

 

Merry Christmas!!! :)

My First EVER Blog Post

Hi bloggy friends!

Well.. I've finally given in and gone over to the dark side. That's right, I have started my very own blog. I have always liked to think of myself as too hipster or something to succumb to the mainstream pull that is sharing your entire life with random people on the internet; however, recently God has been convicting me about the fact that blogging is a great way to share what He is doing in my life, and possibly make amazing connections with people who share my passions. So here we go. :)

I got the idea to name my blog hashtag love (I thought it was creative enough for someone as left-brained as myself) and I feel like it fits perfectly into what I want my blog to become. I want this to be a place where I can share what I love in life, and figure out how to do more of those things. So this first post is just going to be a short list of all the things I love most in life.

• I love my family. I am the eldest of four children, and my siblings (Murphy-15, Garrison-11, and Annie-5) are some of my best friends, as are my incredible parents. 
• I love my friends. We laugh incredibly hard at the most inappropriate times and at the most ridiculous things. They are the people I can totally just by myself around- my awkward, silly, sometimes sassy, and passionate self. And it's the best.
• I love college. I am a freshman at the University of Denver, and it's been the greatest season of life thus far. 
• I love doing nerdy and left-brained things. I am a double math and biology major with a huge dream of one day going to medical school.
• I love Colorado. Have you seen it here?? It's gorgeous, and everyone is so happy and active. Also the mountains are like the best invention ever. Props to their creator! 
• I love running. I'm not very fast and my endurance sucks, but in my mind I'm a beast at it. 
• I love Africa. I spent three weeks in Uganda / Ethiopia two summers ago and it completely changed my life. It's my happy place.
• I love Asia. My sister, Annie, is from China. She constantly makes me smile and challenges the way I do life every single day. I really love Asian people in general, I think they're adorable and if you have an asian child, I secretly want to steal him or her and raise him or her as my own.
• I love India. Yes, I know India is technically in Asia, but I love the food, the culture, and the music. Like a lot. God has placed India on my heart lately; my desire to go there is something I can't even explain, but I know my God is sending me there very soon. And I'm SO excited to see how He does it.   
• I love music. I suck at guitar, but it's so fun to attempt. And you will find me singing inappropriately loud most of the time.  
• I love ugly sweaters/vests. Especially holiday themed ones. Or Hawaiian ones. 
• I love laughing. I laugh ALL the time at everything. My laughs are often too loud, too inappropriate, and too awkward, but whatever, it's great. 
• Above everything else, I love my God. I cannot imagine living without the hope, love, acceptance, purpose, and encouragement I find through Him alone. His grace is absolutely incredible, and somehow His timing always turns out perfectly. Even when I'm so angry at Him, more angry than I've ever been at anyone ever, He always gently draws me back to Him. He's so cool. The coolest guy I have ever met. I have nothing in this life besides Him. 

I'm blessed beyond belief by all of these things, plus SO many more, and I'm excited to see what else I find to fall in love with throughout my life. I'm sure there are many more amazing blessings waiting just around the corner. Thanks for reading! 

In awkwardness and love,

Tay

II Timothy 4:7 #love