The Reason for the Season

Today was not the greatest. It's hard to remain positive about much when the idea that my Christmas off could be completely abolished due to this stupid Glencore deal. I'm having a hard time coming to terms with it. It's not just that I might not get to spend time with my loved ones; I haven't had any more than a few days off at a time since February, and I'm completely exhausted and fed up over it.

You could say I made the choice to not take any time off in the summer. My answer to that is, I did NOT choose that, I didn't have the option. My co-worker's brother passed away right after the August long weekend. I had not planned time off because she already had for the end of August. Due to the events that occurred, I had no choice but to work. And work I did. That was the only month I've ever had more than a few hours of overtime compared to the entire two years prior.

I specifically planned to take the week of Christmas off. That was always my plan. With the 24th and 26th landing on a Tuesday/Wednesday, I could take off three days and still end up with a full week and two weekends at home. A great idea in principle, but not so great when MOFCOM takes their sweet time deciding the outcome of this whole schmozzle.

At this point, I'm praying it doesn't go through or is pushed back again. Sure, it's entirely selfish, but not only do I want to be able to see my family at Christmas, I absolutely need the time off.

If you are one of the family members I'm planning on seeing the weekend before Christmas, please pray that everything works out in my favour, and that you can come to terms with the Nairns not being there, if that's the end result. I need to get to a place where I'm okay with it also, so I understand the frustration and sadness over it. Just remember that Jesus is the reason for the season and no matter where we are, we'll be celebrating it the same way.

Amen.