For as long as I can remember, I have enjoyed creating something with my own hands as a Christmas gift for others — a “homemade Christmas” if you will.

I never got quite as far as making it a mandate for my family, but have always tried to do something. As people approach Jesus’ birth during this pandemic, it is cause to reflect on what we might have created in previous years, and what new things we may want to try this year.

iStock

As I look back, I can compile quite a list of gifts I have made over the years. Perhaps this will spark some ideas for others:

  1. For more than 20 years, I have participated in a program called Project Angel Tree, which was started by the late Chuck Colson, who went to prison as a result of his participation in the Watergate scandal in the 1970s, then had a conversion to Christianity while in prison. This is my longest standing tradition. The program involves giving gifts to children of men and women who are incarcerated. I don’t make the gifts, in this case. Rather, the “homemade” part is delivering them to the children and their guardians. I have had some powerful experiences meeting the families to whom I deliver the presents. Most of the time, I have done this with my children, but also sometimes alone. One of the cool parts is reading a message from the parent in prison. I usually am able to visit with the families for at least a few minutes, and even pray with them on occasion. Two years ago, I went with my daughter, Claire, and we were able to pray with a woman whose son was in prison while she cared for his children. This devout Christian woman poured out her heart, and Claire had what we believed to be divine inspiration as she prayed for this mother and grandmother saddened by the choices her son had made. Over the years, I have developed this simple phrase: “It’s not Christmas without Angel Tree.”
  2. For several years, I took my family over to Mary’s Place run by Mary Jo Copeland, who also operates Sharing and Caring Hands. I took family photos for those living in this transitional housing facility, had prints made by a local lab and brought them back. It was rewarding to give these families a gift I knew they couldn’t afford on their own.
  3. I often give away some of the fruits of my annual deer hunts. Typically, I have the deer processor make venison summer sausage and I give it to landowners who allow me and my family to hunt on their property. It’s a combination thank you and Christmas gift. I always deliver it in person. I also have made venison meatloaf, which I have given to family members. I am a venison lover, and it’s nice to share it with others.
  4. Perhaps the most unique gift I have given was a family radio drama that I produced and put on CD for family members and select friends. I would come up with an idea, write a script and pick out theme music. Then, a friend with some amateur recording equipment would come over and record all of us reading the script in character. We even had him take a picture of our family to use as the CD cover. It was a lot of fun, and we got positive feedback from recipients.
  5. I think the most sentimental gift I have ever made was two years ago when I recorded my parents’ oral history. I put it on a CD and gave it to my four brothers, complete with a photo of my parents on the cover. Now that my dad has passed, it is even more special. Of any homemade gift, I would recommend this to anyone. I enjoyed hearing my parents tell stories of their lives, and I learned new things in the process. And, my mom has continued to add more details since then.

As the years go by, I continue to experience the special feeling of putting my hands — and my heart — into Christmas gift giving.