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>> We have so many different
ways to celebrate Christmas.
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And today we are going
to explore some of those
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traditions, but I
think almost all of us
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have the tradition of giving
gifts at this time of the year.
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There is something about a gift
that makes us really excited.
Perhaps it's the shining
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wrapping paper or it's the
reaction of the receiver, which
could either be excited
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as they open up the gift wrap,
or it could be disappointment.
>> Yeah, and I know both of
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those and those experiences.
Today we have students from
Fountainview Academy.
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They're joining us at
Fountainview Academy. And we're
going to start with
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Josh. And, Josh, you're here
from New Zealand, and where you
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celebrate Christmas -- Are you
on the South Island or the North
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Island? >> Yeah I'm in South
Island. >> Okay, so you do see
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some snow. >> A little bit,
yeah. >> But it's usually warm
at -- >> Our Christmas is hot.
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>> Okay, yeah. So, you had an
experience where you received a
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gift. You want to tell us about
it? >> Sure. So, this happened
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pretty recently, actually, when
our senior class went on a
mission trip to Thailand.
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And it's this beautiful country.
The food was amazing, and it was
it was a really cool experience.
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>> I love Thai food. >> I know.
It was great. So, what happened
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is we were serving the people
there, doing medical missionary
work, and working with our
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hands. And it had been a long
day, and it was our last night
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in Thailand. And my hands
were like blistered all up,
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and they were painful. So I was
ready to hit the sack and go
take a good night's rest.
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And so I was getting snuggled up
in my bed, and all of a sudden
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my friend comes and tells me
that there's a girl waiting
outside for me, and I'm a little
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spooked out because it's kind of
weird to have a girl looking for
you at the middle of the night.
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So I quietly walk out, and I
look outside, and I look up and
I can't see anyone.
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And then I look down, and
there's this little girl there,
and she has this really cute
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bouquet of flowers and this
moose -- this moose here. >>
Aww! That's so cute.
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>> But she quickly hands me this
moose and gives me a flower. And
then she runs off into
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the night, and it was really
cool. And I was just standing
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there still, and I was looking
at it. I was like, "She's an
orphan. She doesn't have any
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parents Like, her clothes, she
doesn't even have that either.
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And this moose was like
literally all she had. And she
gave it to me, a stranger she
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had only known for a couple
days. >> Yeah. >> And that had a
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big impact on me because I
realized that you don't need a
lot -- you don't need to have a
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lot of wealth to give. You
just need a little bit. And that
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little bit makes the difference.
>> And I was a little stressed,
going through schoolwork
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that senior year had brought
upon me, and I realized that
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if I started giving my time and
little that I had to others, it
gave me purpose and meaning.
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And at Christmas, we like
to get, get, get, and get new
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presents, new toys, new cars --
everything. But the real spirit
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of Christmas is about giving.
>> Mm-hmm! >> Yeah. Very good.
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I mean, here you went to this
country to sacrifice, to be a
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missionary. And here you found
the people that you were
serving, a little orphan girl,
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gives you a present. That's
beautiful. >> I went to serve,
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and I was the one who got
served. That's really all about
what Christmas is about.
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Yeah. >> And that gift
was probably very special
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to her and meaningful to her,
and yet she gave it away. She
was prepared to part with it
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and give it to you. >> Yeah,
something happens when we give,
that we actually feel
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like it blesses us and we feel
better about it. Have any of you
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had that experience? >> I had
an experience when I was about
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seven or eight. It's
Christmastime. And I was really
into American Girl dolls at the
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time. Like, they were just my
thing, and I had one, and it was
Christmastime, and it
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was my last present. And I
quickly unwrapped it, and it was
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another American Girl doll. It
was Kit. And I was so excited.
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I was like, "Mom, look
what I got! Can you believe it?
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I got another American Girl!"
She was like, "Yeah, that's
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awesome." >> And she probably
knew it was Kit because she got
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it for you. >> Of course she
bought it for me, but I was just
so excited, and I was like,
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"Can't believe it." And because
it was Christmas and it was
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super busy, the whole family was
there, I never actually took her
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out of the box. I just left her
in there, and I was just
starting at her because she was
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so beautiful, and we were eating
dinner later that day, and my
mom is a midwife, and she was
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telling us how she had to go
visit someone who had their baby
recently. And this family had a
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girl that was about about my
age. And every time a mom would
go to the house this girl be
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sitting on their couch reading
an American Girl magazine. And
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this family was like a family
of five. And they lived in a
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two-room house. So all the kids
lived in one, and the parents
and the baby lived in the other.
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>> Yeah, a bit stretched for
space. >> So, yeah, they didn't
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have very much. I mean, to feed
five kids, that's just a lot.
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And so they couldn't afford to
get her an American Girl doll.
And for some reason, the idea
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popped into my mind that I
should give my American Girl
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doll to her. >> Wow. >> And so I
ran upstairs, and I got Kit, and
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I wrapped her up again. And it
was kind of weird to be wrapping
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up the present that I had just
unwrapped. And I took it
downstairs, and I was like,
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"Mom, I want to go with you, and
I want to give her my American
Girl doll." And my mom was kind
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of shocked that her little
8-year-old daughter was giving
away her Christmas gift
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she just got. And so we drove to
her house. It was snowing like
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crazy, and we went there, and we
were talking, and right before
we left, I went up to the little
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girl, and I was like, "I have a
gift for you." And so I gave her
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the gift, and then we left, and
I never saw her open it, but I
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can only imagine how happy she
was that I was able to give
something to her that I was
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given, too. But it was kind of
like a double reward for me to
get it and also give it.
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>> Wow. That's very beautiful.
>> Yeah, it was a great
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experience. >> Thanks
for sharing that, Adrienne.
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>> Yeah, no problem. >> So, what
would have happened if she maybe
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was disappointed by the gift?
Do you think... I don't know.
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>> I feel like -- Okay, for me,
I had an experience where that
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happened. I was about 10 years
old, and it was at our Secret
Santa party, and everybody
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was really excited for the party
because every year we get gifts
and we give gifts, and it's a
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really exciting time. And I
remember sitting in a classroom,
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and the teacher was coming
around, and she had all the
names in this little box, and
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everybody's reaching in and
drawing names, and I was so
excited for my turn.
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And I reached in, and I
got a paper, and I got somebody
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that I didn't get along
with very well. [ Laughter ]
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We should give her an alias and
a different name, say her name
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is Mildred. And -- >>
Mildred? >> I don't know. Maybe.
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[ Laughter ] And so I realized
that I was going to have
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to really change my attitude,
how I looked at Mildred, because
often we would argue a lot.
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Or she would pick on me, things
that elementary kids really do
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to each other just to irritate
each other. And it was really
hard for me to have to, I guess,
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kind of be a bigger person
and take the initiative and do
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something good for somebody who
had never really done anything
for me. And so I went with my
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mom, and we went to Toys"R"Us,
and she said, "What does Mildred
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like?" And the first thing that
popped into my head was "Polly
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Pocket dolls." And they're like
these literally pocket-sized,
tiny dolls that you can take
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with you, and Mildred would
always bring them to school, and
they're just like little
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plastic little toys. And I
didn't really understand the big
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obsession with the Polly Pocket
dolls, and she would always
bring them to school, and she
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never let me play with them.
So I didn't really like Polly
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Pocket dolls because of that.
And so we got there, and there's
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this whole shelf of Polly
Pockets. There's so many of,
like, the same thing
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They just look a little bit
different. And so I was like,
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"Which one do I get her?" And
out of the corner of my eye, I
saw this one beautiful doll,
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and she had like long blonde
hair, and you could do her hair,
you could play, you could dress
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her up with all these different
outfits, and I was like, "Okay,
I don't really like
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Polly Pocket dolls, but I would
play with that. And so I
remember, to get a good
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gift, you probably want to get
somebody something that you
yourself would want.
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And this is something that I
wanted so badly, so I took it to
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my mom, and I said, "This
is what I want." And my mom was
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like, "Are you sure?" And so I
was like, "Yeah, I'm very sure.
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Like, most people love this."
And so we bought it, you know,
and I wrapped it up,
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and I was waiting and waiting
and waiting for the day where I
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could go to school and give her.
And so the day finally rolled
around, and we started having
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the party, and we started with
this really nice breakfast. We
had like orange juice,
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tater tot casserole, pancakes.
Like, it was amazing. Was like,
"This is going to be
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the best day of my life." Oh,
I'm hungry now. It was so good.
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The orange juice was so good.
And so we... >> Did it have
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pulp? >> It did. It was with the
pulp. It was cold. It was
refrigerated with the
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pulp. >> Oh, I love the
pulp! >> It was so beautiful, so
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good. I'll get you some.
And, so, we started the party
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after we had the amazing
breakfast, and I was just really
excited and everybody's in a
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good mood -- you're full,
you had good food, and now we're
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ready to give gifts and receive
gifts. And so everybody came,
and we sat around this giant
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Christmas tree, and all the
presents were just like
overflowing, up to like half of
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the tree. It was just covered
with presents. And so I remember
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looking at the sea of presents,
and I saw mine right away. I was
like, "That's the one
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I'm going to give to -- I'm so
excited to give it. She's going
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to love it." I was just so
happy. I was like jittering my
seat. And so it came time
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for me to get up and give the
present to Mildred. And I
remember I went over there
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and it was like ceremonial for
me. I'm, like, walking slowly.
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Just I was so -- I was reveling
in the moment. And I placed it
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in her hands, and she looks at
it, and she's like, "Oh, you got
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me a present?" Because we kind
of had this little -- we weren't
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very good friends. She was like,
"You got me a --" And I was
like, "Yeah, I did!" I was
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really excited. I was like,
"Open it. Look at it." And so
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she's tearing apart the paper,
and it felt like an eternity.
She finally got it out,
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and she looked at it. And I
was like, "It's great, right?
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And she looks at it, and she
goes, "I hate it!" And she
throws it on the floor,
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and she burst into tears. She
was crying, and she ran to the
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bathroom. And I just looked at
that beautiful doll sitting on
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the floor, and my heart was
on the floor, too, and I was
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devastated. And I remember just
kind of going and sitting down,
and I was like, "Why would she
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react like that?" She had told
me how many times she loved
Polly Pocket dolls,
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and I thought I was doing the
right thing. So I was hurt in my
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heart because I couldn't
understand why she rejected a
gift that she claimed to love so
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much. And then, oh, the worst
part came when the teachers told
the kids, "If you got a present
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you really don't like or the
person didn't know you very well
and they got you something
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that you can't use, we'll give
you a $10 gift card." You can go
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to Toys"R"Us and exchange your
gift, and they give the gift
card in exchange. And that, oh,
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was the cherry on top, because
Mildred came running, she
grabbed her present, gave it to
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the teacher, the teacher gave
her the gift card, and I was --
I was -- yeah, I was not -- I
00:10:35.66\00:10:40.90
was not happy. I told the
teacher, I was like, "Can I have
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the gift back?" She's like, "You
gave it to Mildred. It's hers to
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do with what she pleases." And
in that moment, I was so hurt
because I just couldn't
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understand that mentality. But
looking back on that experience,
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although it was still painful,
it was a lesson that I'll never
forget you know because of that,
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and that is that, you know, it
was really just a Polly Pocket
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doll. It was only $10. It
wasn't that big of a deal. She'd
00:11:05.03\00:11:08.33
probably forget about it when
actually Christmas came and she
got a whole bunch of other
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presents. So really it wasn't
that big of a deal, but for me
it was. And to think about it,
00:11:12.20\00:11:17.34
I realize that I've also
rejected a gift, something that
00:11:17.34\00:11:21.21
can't be bought with even gold
or silver, but a gift that
really could only have been
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bought by the innocent blood of
the Son of God. And He took the
00:11:24.81\00:11:28.58
shame that I should've borne on
my shoulders. He left His courts
00:11:28.58\00:11:32.19
of glory above to come and take
on the garb of fallen humanity
00:11:32.19\00:11:36.09
for my sake? And when He emerged
from the grave victorious, after
00:11:36.09\00:11:38.83
all the suffering that my sins
put Him through, He extended the
gift that cost Him everything,
00:11:38.83\00:11:43.30
and when I choose not to love
Him, when I choose to treat
others in a way that He never
00:11:43.30\00:11:48.77
would have, I'm rejecting His
gift of salvation -- I'm saying,
"You did this for me,
00:11:48.77\00:11:52.81
but I don't really want it. I
choose to go my own way. I not
only reject the gift but
00:11:52.81\00:11:56.68
the Savior who gave it to me."
And so when I look at myself in
00:11:56.68\00:12:01.02
that light, I kind of think
Mildred, what she did to me,
wasn't so bad because I've done
00:12:01.02\00:12:04.35
the same thing to my Savior who
gave His life for me. So with
00:12:04.35\00:12:08.46
all that in mind, when I think
about Christmas, I don't really
think about it as a time of just
00:12:08.46\00:12:12.16
remembering what the Savior did
and not just remembering His
sacrifice, but living
00:12:12.16\00:12:15.63
as though it changed your life.
And, for me, it's living my life
00:12:15.63\00:12:20.54
and giving my all to Him. And
He'll never reject that. >>
Yeah. That's beautiful.
00:12:20.54\00:12:25.34
>> I wonder what she bought with
the gift card. >> I never knew.
00:12:25.34\00:12:28.34
[ Laughter ] >> Maybe
she bought a Polly Pocket?
00:12:28.34\00:12:30.71
>> I'll ask her. We're
better now. We get along now.
00:12:30.71\00:12:33.82
>> That's good. That's good.
Thank you for sharing that. You
know, when you give
00:12:33.82\00:12:37.92
something to someone else,
you're becoming vulnerable, you
know, and here you're giving it
00:12:37.92\00:12:42.26
to someone who's kind
of an "enemy." >> Yeah.
00:12:42.26\00:12:45.69
>> And putting that in the
spiritual context of Jesus
giving His life for us,
00:12:45.69\00:12:51.70
He was making Himself
vulnerable. We could say,
00:12:51.70\00:12:54.17
"Oh, I hate the gift. I don't
want it." Right? We're going to
00:12:54.17\00:12:57.37
continue our discussion, but
right now we're going to go to a
break, and we'll be right back.
00:12:57.37\00:13:01.84
>> ¤ La la la la
la ¤ La la la la la la
00:13:04.95\00:13:09.92
>> ¤ We three
kings of orient are ¤
00:13:09.92\00:13:14.26
¤ Bearing gifts,
we traverse afar ¤
00:13:14.26\00:13:18.53
¤ Field and
fountain, moor and mountain ¤
00:13:18.53\00:13:22.73
¤ Following yonder star ¤
Oh, star of wonder, star of
00:13:22.73\00:13:30.31
night ¤ ¤ Star with royal beauty
00:13:30.31\00:13:34.58
bright ¤ ¤
Westward leading, still
00:13:34.58\00:13:38.45
proceeding ¤ ¤
Guide us to thy perfect
00:13:38.45\00:13:43.89
light ¤ ¤ La la la la
00:13:43.89\00:13:47.99
¤ Born a King on
Bethlehem's plain ¤
00:13:47.99\00:13:51.96
¤ Gold I bring
to crown him again ¤
00:13:51.96\00:13:55.86
¤ King for ever, ceasing never ¤
00:13:55.86\00:13:59.90
¤ Over us all to reign ¤
Oh, oh, star of wonder, star
00:13:59.90\00:14:08.71
of night ¤ ¤
Star with royal beauty
00:14:08.71\00:14:13.38
bright ¤ ¤
Westward leading, still
00:14:13.38\00:14:17.52
proceeding ¤ ¤
Guide us to thy perfect
00:14:17.52\00:14:23.19
light ¤ ¤ Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah
00:14:23.19\00:14:27.20
¤ Glorious now,
behold Him arise ¤
00:14:27.20\00:14:31.07
¤ King and God and
sacrifice ¤ Alleluia, alleluia
00:14:31.07\00:14:38.94
¤ Sounds through
the earth and skies ¤
00:14:38.94\00:14:42.64
¤ Oh, oh, star of
wonder, star of night ¤
00:14:42.64\00:14:51.35
¤ Star with
royal beauty bright ¤
00:14:51.35\00:14:57.09
¤ Westward
leading, still proceeding ¤
00:14:57.09\00:15:06.10
¤ Guide us to
thy perfect light ¤¤
00:15:06.10\00:15:18.85
>> Canada.
00:15:22.28\00:15:23.32
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00:15:23.35\00:15:26.25
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00:15:32.66\00:15:36.00
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>> So, because I grew up here
in Canada, I'm used to a white
00:18:06.45\00:18:12.42
Christmas and it's cold. I
remember it -- Actually, I grew
up in an orphanage in
00:18:12.42\00:18:16.42
Saskatchewan. And in this place,
they had every year what they
00:18:16.42\00:18:21.03
call the CHABC Christmas party,
and that was a local radio
00:18:21.03\00:18:25.80
station. And so they would come
in, and they would have a guy
00:18:25.80\00:18:29.40
who was very jolly with rosy red
cheeks, and he would dress up in
a legit Santa Claus outfit.
00:18:29.40\00:18:36.28
I mean, it wasn't one of those
cheap ones. Like, he had leather
00:18:36.28\00:18:39.81
boots. He had a leather belt. I
mean, it looked real authentic,
00:18:39.81\00:18:43.95
right? And he came to the
window, and he would "Ho, ho,
ho!" And he had the bells and
00:18:43.95\00:18:49.56
all of that. And he would give
us gifts. >> Did he have white
00:18:49.56\00:18:52.29
hair? >> He had white hair.
He had a beard. But as I grew
00:18:52.29\00:18:56.23
older, I knew which guy it was,
and he didn't look like Santa at
00:18:56.23\00:18:59.27
all. But when he put the outfit,
he was like perfect Santa Claus,
00:18:59.27\00:19:02.84
right? >> And so for me that is
Christmas and some of you come
00:19:02.84\00:19:05.94
from -- >> I don't think I've
seen one of those. >> You've
00:19:05.94\00:19:08.64
never seen one of those? >> I
don't think I've seen -- >>
You've never seen a
00:19:08.64\00:19:11.05
Santa Claus? >> Like, on TV
or stuff, but I don't think I've
00:19:11.05\00:19:13.78
seen him just sitting around
just with his little bells. >>
With his little bells?
00:19:13.78\00:19:16.38
>> No. >> What?
Dude, they're everywhere.
00:19:16.38\00:19:19.42
There's so many of them.
They all look the same. >> So,
00:19:19.42\00:19:23.39
Jasmine, you come from
Australia. >> Yeah. >> So do you
00:19:23.39\00:19:26.03
have that over there? >> Well,
yeah, we definitely have that
kind of aspect with
00:19:26.03\00:19:29.10
Santa and that, and we like to
get into Christmas in a similar
way to that of North America.
00:19:29.10\00:19:33.60
But originally, I guess, our
traditions are a bit different.
00:19:33.60\00:19:37.01
In Australia, for me, Christmas
has always been the heat of
00:19:37.01\00:19:41.68
summer. Like, for me, Christmas
is going to the beach, having a
barbecue, spending time with
00:19:41.68\00:19:47.22
friends. >> What?! That's so
cool. >> Exactly. So, for us,
00:19:47.22\00:19:50.35
when we're getting into the
spirit of giving and getting
ready for Christmas with family
00:19:50.35\00:19:54.46
-- and food is a big thing for
us, as well. We love eating with
friends, and food is very
00:19:54.46\00:20:01.00
special to us when it comes to
Christmas. So, yeah, I have a
story that's kind of similar to
00:20:01.00\00:20:06.67
yours. We like to have Christmas
parties just like that. And, for
me, this story happened
00:20:06.67\00:20:10.87
when I was probably about five
or six years old, and I remember
00:20:10.87\00:20:15.01
Christmas was just starting
to get into the swing of things
00:20:15.01\00:20:18.65
when my dad used to go out
weekly and feed the homeless.
And I remember always
00:20:18.65\00:20:23.32
wishing that I could go with
him, and I used to beg him and
be like, "Dad you should take
00:20:23.32\00:20:27.29
me. It would be
so much fun to go out
00:20:27.29\00:20:29.26
and help these people with you."
But each time he kind of told me
00:20:29.26\00:20:32.93
that it was a little bit
dangerous and I was a bit too
young and that maybe one day
00:20:32.93\00:20:36.43
my chance would come. So,
anyway, as Christmas was
starting to get closer
00:20:36.43\00:20:41.34
and closer, one time my dad came
home from one of his outings,
00:20:41.34\00:20:44.84
and he told us, "Guess
what, Jasmine. The company
00:20:44.84\00:20:47.61
that puts on these dinners for
the homeless, they're having a
00:20:47.61\00:20:51.71
Christmas party. And you can
come and mom can come and your
sisters can come, and it'll be a
00:20:51.71\00:20:56.52
big family thing that we can go
out and help people." And I was
00:20:56.52\00:20:59.82
so excited. I was like,
"Finally, I get my chance. I
love working with food.
00:20:59.82\00:21:03.79
I love giving and helping
people." And so I was like,
00:21:03.79\00:21:07.96
"Yes, I can go out, and I can
feed people, and I can help
people." So, anyway, the time
00:21:07.96\00:21:12.93
was getting closer to this
Christmas party, and it had been
hot. It was December.
00:21:12.93\00:21:17.14
It was the middle of summer --
or the beginning of summer. And
00:21:17.14\00:21:20.78
we'd been going to the beach and
swimming a lot. And, anyway, we
were ready for this party.
00:21:20.78\00:21:25.75
And so as we all get in the car
and we're driving into Sydney,
we noticed these big black
00:21:25.75\00:21:31.42
storm clouds starting to form.
And we were just like, "Well,
we'll see what happens."
00:21:31.42\00:21:36.89
And so, anyway, by the time we
get to the party, it's windy and
00:21:36.89\00:21:41.96
there's storm clouds everywhere
and all of the setups are
starting to shake, and there's
00:21:41.96\00:21:47.64
so many people, but there's
chaos everywhere and it was
still like a lot of people
00:21:47.64\00:21:51.54
there, and we had the Santa
Claus all dressed up, just like
your Christmas party.
00:21:51.54\00:21:54.74
And so, pretty soon, I
completely forgot about why I
wanted to come to this party.
00:21:54.74\00:22:00.08
I was so scared by all of the
wind and the chaos that I was
00:22:00.08\00:22:04.05
huddling with my parents and I
found a blanket and I was just
trying to stay away from
00:22:04.05\00:22:07.86
everything as much as possible.
And I remember just as I was
like sitting there,
00:22:07.86\00:22:12.33
I kind of noticed this little
girl that was looking at me, and
00:22:12.33\00:22:16.83
I open my blanket a little bit
to see what she was doing, and I
realized that she came
00:22:16.83\00:22:22.90
from a background far worse off
than me. And she came up to me
00:22:22.90\00:22:27.64
holding a tray of fairy bread.
Now, fairy bread is basically
every Australian's child, like,
00:22:27.64\00:22:37.12
dessert dream. It's like
the definition of happiness.
00:22:37.12\00:22:41.19
Basically, what it is, is plain
white bread that is then
buttered and then covered
00:22:41.19\00:22:46.70
with rainbow sprinkles. Now, it
might sound a little bit simple,
00:22:46.70\00:22:51.47
but, to us, it was definitely
the epitome of happiness. Any
party that you went
00:22:51.47\00:22:55.90
to, fairy bread was a guarantee.
And so we love the stuff. We
couldn't get enough of it.
00:22:55.90\00:23:01.38
And so, anyway, as I was sitting
there in this blanket, this
little girl came up to me
00:23:01.38\00:23:04.85
with this simple tray of fairy
bread, and she extended it out
to me and offered me a piece.
00:23:04.85\00:23:10.35
And I was absolutely shocked
in that moment. I was only five
00:23:10.35\00:23:14.32
years old, but the idea that I
had come to this party to help
girls just like her
00:23:14.32\00:23:20.10
and instead the reverse had
happened and I was the one
sitting comfortably and she was
00:23:20.10\00:23:25.70
the one that extended what she
had to offer to me. And so after
we left that party,
00:23:25.70\00:23:31.74
because it kind of all came to
a close much quicker due to the
00:23:31.74\00:23:35.64
storm, I remember just riding
home with my family and
thinking, "It doesn't matter
00:23:35.64\00:23:41.25
where you come from. Christmas
is about giving, and you don't
have to be in the right position
00:23:41.25\00:23:46.22
to be able to give. Anyone
can give. And so that's just the
00:23:46.22\00:23:49.09
lesson that I've been able to
take with me, with many
Christmases to come,
00:23:49.09\00:23:52.59
that it doesn't matter how big
or how small or what you have.
You can always give.
00:23:52.59\00:23:58.60
>> Awesome. >> Well, I can kind
of relate to Jasmine with her
00:23:58.60\00:24:02.77
happiness -- the fairy braid,
right? -- and also growing up in
a country where it's hot,
00:24:02.77\00:24:07.44
because I was born and raised in
South Africa, and we celebrate
00:24:07.44\00:24:11.78
Christmases when it is hot, by
the pool, and having watermelon.
So what about you, Ronald?
00:24:11.78\00:24:17.69
You're from Panama. >> Well,
actually, Panama and Chile, so a
00:24:17.69\00:24:22.86
bit of both, moving around and
stuff. Every single country that
I've been to, it's kind of more
00:24:22.86\00:24:27.00
of a kind of cool atmosphere
when it's hits December. It's
not necessarily snow,
00:24:27.00\00:24:33.27
but it's not boiling hot either,
most of the time. And it's
00:24:33.27\00:24:37.51
always different experiences in
different places that I was in.
When we were smaller,
00:24:37.51\00:24:41.08
we'd always try to go back
to Panama or Chile and celebrate
00:24:41.08\00:24:46.88
Christmases there. And when it
was there, we'd have, like, a
parade. The city would shut
00:24:46.88\00:24:51.52
down, the road would get
blocked, and then there'd be a
little, like, car show
00:24:51.52\00:24:54.82
with different music and stuff
and then fireworks. But the
older we got, the harder
00:24:54.82\00:24:59.26
it was to kind of get back to
basically the countries that we
00:24:59.26\00:25:04.50
were from, and we'd start
celebrating Christmas more on
our own. And when we were
00:25:04.50\00:25:07.54
little, they still tried to keep
that Christmas atmosphere of the
big plastic tree when you
00:25:07.54\00:25:11.81
rearrange the branches and the
lights and stuff. [ Laughter ]
00:25:11.81\00:25:15.64
But the older we got, almost the
smaller the Christmas trees got,
and soon there was an age
00:25:15.64\00:25:19.75
where every single one would
have a small Christmas tree in
00:25:19.75\00:25:23.32
this room. And then, afterwards,
it would be like sticky-note
Christmas trees or, if not,
00:25:23.32\00:25:27.19
just a paper cutout Christmas
tree. And then soon, we kind of
00:25:27.19\00:25:30.29
just threw the Christmas tree
idea out, and now we just have
00:25:30.29\00:25:33.73
lights everywhere. And the older
we got, the smaller the gifts
got, but the more time we'd
00:25:33.73\00:25:37.23
spend with each other, the
more we would less hang out with
00:25:37.23\00:25:39.63
friends, then where we just kind
of stay home and just kind of
relish the gift of time
00:25:39.63\00:25:43.10
that we had together. And what
we would do is now be kind of
00:25:43.10\00:25:47.78
pull out a mattress. We
watch a movie. We have lights
00:25:47.78\00:25:51.45
everywhere. We have like a small
little dinner, and it's not
something fancy, but it's not
00:25:51.45\00:25:56.69
something, like, horrible
either. It's this nice really
simple dinner, and we'd just
00:25:56.69\00:26:01.12
enjoy the time that we have
together. I think two years ago
-- We've been missionaries in
00:26:01.12\00:26:05.96
Thailand, and what happened was
that, on Christmas Day, we
wouldn't be together.
00:26:05.96\00:26:10.37
My sister and my mom would stay
in Thailand, and me and my dad
00:26:10.37\00:26:15.27
would go to Chile. And what
happened was that we decided
that, instead of just spending
00:26:15.27\00:26:20.48
Christmas apart, we'd just move
it to December 15th and just
celebrate Christmas together.
00:26:20.48\00:26:24.15
So we put this Christmas album
that we always listen to and
just kind of have some nuts
00:26:24.15\00:26:29.95
and then just decorate the house
and just spend Christmas on that
00:26:29.95\00:26:33.46
day. And it felt like Christmas
because for me Christmas was
00:26:33.46\00:26:37.09
never the day but it was the
time and the moment that we have
00:26:37.09\00:26:39.66
together. We create Christmas.
Christmas isn't the day itself,
that, all of a sudden, trees
00:26:39.66\00:26:43.60
pop out of nowhere and lights
pop out of nowhere. We make it
00:26:43.60\00:26:47.17
that way, and we did it on the
15th, and when December 25th
hit, we didn't really feel
00:26:47.17\00:26:51.94
this really big Christmas,
because we already celebrated it
00:26:51.94\00:26:55.31
before. And last year we did the
same thing, but here in Canada.
We spent a white Christmas.
00:26:55.31\00:27:00.18
We hadn't had one in a very long
time, because even in Chile,
00:27:00.18\00:27:04.09
where we lived, the most that
we'd get is just a little bit of
frost, not even snow.
00:27:04.09\00:27:08.39
And it was like this big
white Christmas, and we're just
00:27:08.39\00:27:11.46
jumping around in the snow
because we're not used to it.
And it was like there was
00:27:11.46\00:27:15.10
an actual Christmas tree. It was
just really different, and we
00:27:15.10\00:27:18.87
just enjoyed it, because for us,
the gift is family and the gift
00:27:18.87\00:27:22.80
is time, the time that you can
give. And that's something that
you can keep on giving.
00:27:22.80\00:27:27.38
>> Mm-hmm. >> Thank you
so much for sharing with us,
00:27:27.38\00:27:30.18
Ronald and Josh and Adrienne and
Cheyenne and Jasmine. Thank you
00:27:30.18\00:27:35.88
so much. Really, Christmas is
all about what we find here in
the Scriptures, that Jesus
00:27:35.88\00:27:39.82
came into this world.
00:27:39.82\00:27:41.39
I just want to read
this to you. In Isaiah 9:6,
00:27:41.42\00:27:44.69
it says, "For unto
us a child is born.
00:27:44.69\00:27:47.40
Unto us a son is given, and
the government shall be upon
00:27:47.40\00:27:50.57
His shoulders, and
His name shall be called
00:27:50.57\00:27:53.27
Wonderful,
Counselor, Almighty God,
00:27:53.27\00:27:56.44
the Everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace."
00:27:56.44\00:27:59.81
So this is talking about Jesus,
and Jesus came to this world.
00:27:59.84\00:28:03.35
He was from everlasting God. The
fullness of the Godhead dwelt in
00:28:03.35\00:28:09.85
Him bodily, as the apostle Paul
says. And He came to this world,
and He was possessed of one
00:28:09.85\00:28:15.09
purpose, and that was He lived
to bless others, and that is
what Christmas is all about.
00:28:15.09\00:28:19.86
It's about giving, what you have
shared with us, and we know in
00:28:19.86\00:28:24.53
our hearts that, when we share
gifts, that we are blessed
ourselves in the act of blessing
00:28:24.53\00:28:30.21
others. And so we've come to the
end of our program today, and I
just want to remind you
00:28:30.21\00:28:34.24
to remember the words of Jesus
that, "It is written: 'Man shall
not live by bread alone, but by
00:28:34.24\00:28:39.91
every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God.'"
00:28:39.91\00:28:43.82
¤¤
00:28:47.16\00:28:56.83