Making a list! (or not)

I was sitting at church last Sunday when a good friend of mine started talking about what Christmas and the holiday season was all about.  I’m a list person.  I keep “to do” lists both physically and constantly in my mind as I keep a fairly hectic schedule.  When the holidays approach it seems as though my “lists” are never ending.  Just as quickly as I knock something off the list three more things are added.  Are your holidays like that?

Send cards, shop for relatives, decorate the house, decorate the tree, stop at shipping store to mail gifts, work on Church holiday programs, plan holiday meals, and shop for holiday meals are just a short version of the longer list detailing all the specifics needing to get done.  Of course I have a business to run and various holiday parties and events to attend as well.  There is just so much to do in December and not enough time to get it all done. 

My head spins and I begin to wonder if the list will ever be done.  Isn’t that what matters?   Getting prepared for the holidays is the highest priority?  For me at least, I tend to fall into that trap more than need be.

Back to what my friend Mike shared at Church Sunday.  Mike is one of those guys who is always busy as well.  A devoted servant of the church, Mike is a leader of the praise band and is always lending his time to play at special services, parties and even funerals and weddings.  He talked about how he too lived by the lists at Christmas.  He lost his wife at too young an age and the “duties” for the surviving parent were overwhelming. 

And at the height of his frustrations one holiday season he visited some old friends.  Over the course of a few days he shared with these friends his concerns and problems and all the things on his list he wasn’t getting done.   After a few days of self centered pity, his friend offered simple advice.   “Mike” she said.  “It’s not about you, it’s about a celebration of a birth in a manger, the coming together of family and friends to remember what matters.”

We have had a remarkable year in Real Estate.  Sales continue to climb, housing prices are creeping up and consumer confidence promises more of the same as we move into next year.  We are busier than we have been in several years.  If you are like me, this “busy-ness” means you are relying on lists to make sure your holidays are perfect.   My advice for the day, if the lists don’t get done, it’s alright!  Remember to stop what you are doing, lay down your phones, turn off your computers, and just enjoy those things that matter.  It wasn’t about Mike, and it’s not about me or you either.

Happy Holidays!

(This is a repost from the December "Knothole". A publication of the Champaign County Association of REALTORS)