I love Christmas. There's that special feeling that you get as it gets closer that you don't get any other time of the year. The time that you get to spend with family, and the chance to refelct on the Saviour is amazing. And as much as you try to "make everyday like Christmas," it's impossible. Because no matter what, when you wake up on Christmas morning, it feels different.
This year when my roommates put up the Christmas trees and started all the decorations, I got sad that I would be in Italy away from everyone. I did it on my mission, but there was a different kind of Spirit there. I had important work to do, and I was spending everyday in the Christmas Spirit anyway. So I was a little worried that this year I would be missing that special feeling that comes with Christmas. However, it will go down as one of the fondest Christmases yet!
On Christmas Eve, we hopped a train to Pisa. There was an older couple (The Snows) that I knew that were serving their mission there, and when I emailed them they were excited to have "kids" for Christmas, so they invited us over. We got there at about 8:30pm, and got a taxi to their house. There was a warm welcome from the Snow's, and the 2 young Elders that were participating in the Christmas Eve celebration. We were fed, had a small Christmas message from the Elders before they headed home, and given warm beds (I got a couch and Randy an air mattress, but comfortable nonetheless).
On Christmas Morning we woke up, had breakfast, read Luke 2 and talked about the Atonement. Then the Snows had a full day planned of meeting with different families in the Branch, so we gladly tagged along with them.
Pisa is one of the places in Italy where they have a pretty large army base. We visited a small family there with 3 little boys and brought them some Christmas presents. Randy and I have both agreed that this was what made Christmas like home for us. The kids were showing us everything they got, and letting us play with them. I introduced Randy to Bakugons and he instantly became an excited 7 yr old. We built some Lego monsters, and then ended it all with a Nerf gun fight. Randy won... but only because mine broke. Jerk.
We visited a few more people and then came home for dinner. The Snows were calling their kids while Randy and I ate dinner. In the middle of our food Randy got up and came back to the table with a box and a note with my name on it. Stinker. So I smiled and went to my bag and came back with a wrapped present.
In one of the many wanderings around the random alleys of Naples we found this soap shop. The man who worked there had spent a great deal of time apprenticing under an older woman in London, and when he came home to Italy he taught his sister, who opened up this shop. It was just a small shop tucked away in the depths of Naples, but there was a magic to the whole shop. I immediately fell in love, and Randy had gotten me some of the soap.
We also found a "Temporary Store" where they set up for a short period and sell random things at pretty reasonable prices, including beautiful Italian silk ties. There was one that Randy loved, but wouldn't buy, so I bought it for him and wrapped it up.
It was a quiet, really uneventful Christmas, but there was a special spirit about it. The gifts were small and relatively cheap, but meaningful. There was thought put into them, and they were bought with pretty much the only money we had to spare, money we needed to survive. Kinda like A Christmas Carol :)
