Joy and Thanks!

JOY . . . because Christmas is just a few days away and THANKS because of the many things that bless and touch my life.

It is a perfect "stay-at-home" day with the colder weather, sprinkles of rain, and gifts to wrap. I have Christmas movies on, the tree lit, packages, paper and ribbon spread everywhere, and a grateful heart.

My dear daughter recently brought to my attention the need to stop and re-evaluate my priorities and to remember what is most precious to me. We have been so caught up in life . . . working and operating the store . . . running from one place to the next . . . and trying to keep some type of sanity at home. You can only burn the candle for so long before it burns out, and I am grateful for a wise daughter who has the courage to realize that fact and wants to do something about it. After all, when this life ends it won't be how many hours we worked, or how financially successful we were, or how stressed we let ourselves be that will matter. What is the final test is how well we lived our life, what values we treasured and kept, and what we did to bring love and hope and joy into the lives of others!

I know that we need to be responsible for meeting our earthly needs, i.e., food, shelter, etc., but ultimately we are accountable for our stewardship and what we did with our time and our talents and with the promises we made and kept. I am grateful for this time of year and the reminder that "Jesus is the reason for the season". I am also grateful for children who love me and care about me and help me be the best "Sandy" I can be!

Enjoy the holiday season. Take time to be with those you love and take time for yourself. Afterall, if we get burned out we won't be able to help those who need us most! Life continues to be GREAT in Mesa, Arizona.