It's the Christmas season, and if you've made your way out to any shopping center, you sure have seen the effects of it. The holiday spirit is high, and people are scrambling to get their gift shopping done. However, through all the madness this holiday season has brought, and all of the items I've been wishing for, there's one gift that seems the most significant this year.

I've always loved the thought of giving and receiving presents with family and friends each year, especially being able to give to others. However, this year is a bit different from years past. I recently lost my job, and the majority of my immediate family is only making enough to pay the bills and keep themselves well fed. So this year, there won't be too many extravagant gifts under the trees, and that is one hundred percent alright with me. While opening up presents is wonderful, this year I'm most thankful to have the gift of love, and more specifically the gift of my family and friends themselves. I'm thankful for the people who have remained constant in my life over the years, regardless of the fancy presents we might have exchanged. In addition, I am thankful for the love of Christ, whose undying love for us is what makes this season even more incredible.

As I've been out and about picking up little things to give loved ones, I ultimately have stepped back and come to realize that simply having them in my life is the best gift I could have ever received. I have two parents who, while separated now, both have so much love in their hearts not only for my brother and I, but for everyone else in their lives. I am so incredibly thankful to have been raised by two amazing individuals, as not everyone is so fortunate. I am also fortunate to still have many extended family members still around and in good health. So, while we may not be giving and receiving much this year, we still have each other, and that's what is most important.

Some of my favorite holiday memories with family are simply sitting around a crowded living room, with everyone smiling, laughing, enjoying homemade dishes, watching television, and enjoying each other's company, all of this without a care in the world for who's getting what. I have been incredibly blessed with a loving family, and some amazing friends over the course of my life, so this Christmas I'm thinking of them as the greatest gift I could ever ask for, and hoping that they may receive many blessings, for they truly deserve it.

While you're out doing holiday shopping, and when you sit down to exchange gifts, keep this in mind- those sitting around you, who have truly cared to have a place in your life, are the greatest gift you've received, and something not everyone has. Here's to hoping that everyone has had a Happy Hanukkah, will have a Merry Christmas, or simply a lovely winter break full of fantastic memories!