MY NEW CHRISTMAS PILLOW

I received this handmade pillow on Wednesday night, a quilted gift from an acquaintance I met a couple years ago and don't really know. She enclosed a note that mentioned a couple specific interactions we've had (probably the only ones we've had), described how this pillow came to be, and explained why she gave it to me. And I cried. For quite a while.

You may look at this pillow and have opinions about Santa, Jesus, Christmas, home decor, or quilting. For me, someone who regularly struggles with feeling like a failure and who's much quicker to point out the negative than to verbalize the positive (particularly at home, because that's where our expectations tend to be highest and our behavior the worst), this pillow will always be a special reminder of a few things. 

First, God wired us all differently, with each person having a unique combination of personality and skills. No one is going to be awesome at everything, but everything's awesome when each person's strengths are in the mix. Whether through intentional words and actions or through unintentionally doing what comes naturally to us, we have countless opportunities to make life a little better for someone else.

Second, just because you're failing at something (or lots of things) doesn't mean you're a failure. Sometimes you're succeeding at something and don't even know it. And failure is a little bit subjective anyway. 

Third, people matter, and they need to know they matter. It's important to reach out in whatever ways we're able so that no one feels invisible. And it's important to let people know how they've positively impacted us, whether in trivial or significant ways.

This pillow will be a constant visual reminder for me through the rest of the Christmas season to focus on objective facts instead of subjective feelings, look for opportunities to bless other people, and speak words of praise and gratitude as often as I can. All of which sounds lovely, but actually takes some effort and discipline. 

And in case you wondered, quilting is absolutely not one of the skills God gave me. Now you know.