Every year, I am always blown away by the decorations at the South Dakota State Capitol. Volunteers decorate dozens of trees and decorate the whole Capitol in a theme. This year, the theme is Through a Childs Eyes, and everything is larger than life to make you feel like a little kid again. If youve never experienced Christmas at the Capitol, I would encourage you to do so before the season is over the last day to see the trees is Dec. 26.
When my kids were little, I was driving with them out to Rapid City, and we stopped at the State Capitol to see the trees. Booker was about four years old, and when we came in the doors, he threw his arms out and exclaimed, Its the North Pole! So when I think about seeing Christmas Through a Childs Eyes, I remember how Booker saw the Capitol that year.
This theme truly is a reminder of how we should view the world and how we should celebrate Christmas. We should look at the world with hope and optimism. We should see everything as new the way that our kids do. Our kids look forward to the holidays because we tell them stories; we spend time with family; we teach our kids about the birth of our Savior and the salvation that He brings. And yes, theres always gifts, but we also celebrate the gifts we are blessed with like living in the wonderful state of South Dakota in the freest nation to ever exist.
Bryon shared with me that one of his favorite Christmas memories was always going to the Christmas Eve service with his family, particularly holding the candle. He loved being trusted with that candle, and he remembers how magical it was to look around the church at all the other candles how quiet and holy it seemed spending time together in worship.
When I was a kid, my parents would always give me and my siblings one gift together. On Christmas morning, theyd hide it somewhere on our farm and ranch, and we would go on a scavenger hunt as a family to find it. We find notes in the barn, in the shop, or in a tractor one time a note was taped to a cows head pointing us in the direction of our gift. It might take us an hour or two to solve, but at the end of the hunt, we didnt just have a present we had a memory together as a family. That was often much more special than the gift itself. As kids, we would always get up early and do chores for our dad. We would get up before he even woke up so that we could surprise him with the fact that he didnt need to do any work on Christmas morning.
We tried to create those memories for our kids, as well. None of our children were allowed to come out of their rooms until I rang the Christmas Bell. It was tradition that once mom was ready, Id ring the bell, and the celebration would begin.
I hope that all of you have the opportunity to celebrate your own Christmas traditions this year. Please think about the holiday season Through a childs eyes. Youll find the season even more beautiful, more memorable, and more special. God bless you all and Merry Christmas.
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