Different Kind of Christmas and family photos

While I'm working on my post about how the three of us spent our Christmas, I wanted to share with you a song I heard the week of Christmas.  It  is a beautifully written song for anyone who has lost a loved one going through the Christmas holiday.

We also took family pictures in early December.  That was hard, but I am happy with them.  Every new thing, everything that we have to do different or find a new way to do something so that it is still feels like "us" continues to be exhausting and painful.  

I encourage you to click on this link, Different Kind of Christmas, and listen to the song.  I know I am not the only one that will be touched by it.

A Different Kind of Christmas by Mark Schultz

Snow is falling Christmas Eve
Lights are coming on up and down the street
The sound of carols fills the air
And people rushing home, families everywhere

Putting candles in the windows
Lights upon the tree
But there's no laughter in this house
Not like there used to be
There's just a million little memories
That remind me you're not here
It's just a different kind of Christmas this year

In the evening fires glow
Dancing underneath the mistletoe
A letter left from Santa Claus
Won't be the same this year in this house because

There's one less place set at the table
One less gift under the tree
And a brand new way to take their place inside of me
I'm unwrapping all these memories
Fighting back the tears
It's just a different kind of Christmas this year

There's voices in the driveway
Families right outside the door
And we'll try to make this Christmas like the ones we've had before
As we gather round the table, I see joy on every face
And I realize what's still alive is the legacy you made

It's time to put the candles in the windows, the lights upon the tree
It's time to fill this house with laughter like it used to be
Just because you're up in heaven, doesn't mean you're not near
It's just a different kind of Christmas
It's just a different kind of Christmas this year