Spirit of the Season

I originally posted this on my other blog, Life of a Twingle Gal; but as it involves my Guides I thought I'd share it here too.
I'm hoping it may provide other Guiders with ideas on how they too can share in the spirit of the season.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the City of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men'".

Luke 2:10

Sometimes at this time of year, we get all wrapped up in the hustle and bustle of the season and we forget what Christmas is really about.  But, it's not just Christmas.  Many religious groups celebrate this time of year.  Whether it be Hanukkah, Kwanza or any other religious Holiday, the season is about celebration and love.

Tonight, my Guides and Pathfinders went to McMaster Children's Hospital to do some carolling for the kids who will be spending the holidays there.  We spoke with our girls prior to the visit and talked about what they might see while we were there.  They all seemed very open to the fact that there could be a wide variety of ailments and treatments happening.  We made a craft to give each child that visited us, a little winter toque for their holiday décor, and prepared about 10 popular, secular, carols to sing.  The hospital staff were very open and excited to have us in and prepared the lounge for us to perform.  We had several patients and families join us for our performance and we even had a couple of the older kids join in the singing.  

It was amazing to see the faces warm up to our, totally off-key and sometimes way too fast, singing.  Something so simple, brought such joy to these kids.  At the end of our time, the staff all thanked us for coming.  We even had several of the patients' parents come up to thank the girls too which I think made our girls' night.  

But what made it all worth it, was hearing our girls say "thank-you" for bringing them to the hospital to sing for the "sick kids".  They all agreed that this was probably one of the best gifts we could give to people we don't know and it made them feel good to help out.

I say to my girls and fellow Guiders, job well done!  We set out to teach our girls that the season is about more than gifts and possessions and I think we accomplished that tonight.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Kwanza and Happy Holidays!  May the spirit of the season burn bright in your hearts today and all the year through.