Today, December 6th, is the Feast of St. Nicholas. He had a reputation for secret gift-giving, such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out for him, and thus became the model for Santa Claus.
The obvious recipients of our gift giving efforts this month are our children, family and friends. But why stop there?
As a family, go serve a meal at a soup kitchen. If your children have never been to a nursing home, make some homemade cards and cookies and go visit the elderly who wait for people to come visit them. Better yet, if your family is musically inclined work up some Christmas carols and sing for them. There are veterans in hospitals who would love nothing more than to see a friendly warm smile enter the room.
Here’s a radical suggestion. Instead of multiple gifts under the tree for each family member, buy one gift for each person (or set a price limit) and use the money you would have spent to buy food and gifts for people who have very little this season. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said “Self-sacrifice is the real miracle out of which all the reported miracles grow.”
If you are a titleholder, there are numerous opportunities for you to give of your time and talents to reach out to people in your community. When the public sees queens being of service, those actions are what begin to break down the myths of pageant girls being superficial. Crown or no crown. Get involved and be the “secret Santa” in your community. By the way, the word Santa comes from the Latin word Sanctus which means saintly or holy.
Happy Feast of St. Nicholas Day. Embrace the joy of giving and I leave you with a sweet little poem.
Santa's Christmas Prayer
By Warren D. Jennings
The sleigh was packed,
the reindeer were fed,
But Santa still knelt
by the side of the bed.
"Dear Father," he prayed
"Be with me tonight.
There's much work to do
and my schedule is tight.
I must jump in my sleigh
and streak through the sky,
Knowing full well
that a reindeer can't fly.
I will visit each household
before the first light,
I'll cover the world
and all in one night.
With sleigh bells a-ringing,
I'll land on each roof,
Amid the soft clatter
of each little hoof.
To get in the house
is the difficult part,
So I'll slide down the chimney
of each little heart.
My sack will hold toys
to grant all their wishes.
The supply will be endless
like the loaves and the fishes.
I will fill all the stockings
and not leave a track.
I'll eat every cookie
that's left for my snack.
I can do all these things Lord,
only through You,
I just need your blessing,
then it's easy to do.
All this is to honor
the birth of the One,
That was sent to redeem us,
Your most Holy Son.
So to all of my friends,
lest Your glory I rob,
Please Lord, remind them,
who gave me this job."
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Rhonda Shappert is an expert pageant coach, an iPEC Certified Professional Coach, an Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner, and an Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with the International Coach Federation (ICF).
She created Winning Through Pageantry® to partner with pageant contestants and their support people to provide complete pageant preparation, achieve winning results in life through pageantry, and to Succeed From The Inside Out®.
She has over 30 years experience in the pageantry world as a contestant, judge, emcee, staff member, mother of daughters who compete, Mrs. Ohio America 2005, and has held multiple titles at the local, state and national levels.
Rhonda graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelors degree in Musical Theater from The Ohio State University and has performed on stage in 15 countries on the Asian, European and American continents. This mother of three home educates their children and has been married 22 years to her husband Stephen, is the former mayor of her community, and serves on the Board of Trustees for the Ohio Virtual Academy. She and her husband perform original contemporary Christian music. For more information on Rhonda, visit www.WinningThroughPageantry.com.
