"The holiest of holidays are those kept by ourselves in silence and apart; The secret anniversaries of the heart." - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I am watching the gray sky with a hint of pink brushing over King's mountain. A full moon looms tonight. All are signs of peace this holiday season...Peace...We all have our own definitions of that word. Lately, for myself, peace means a hot bath and a People magazine. A glass of Pinot Grigio usually makes my world even more peaceful but I digress...So with my mind wandering, I thought of the following...
My husband just returned from his last minute Christmas shopping and commented on how ridiculously rude people were. In the stores, driving through parking lots, created an exhaustion like no other. He is now soaking in the tub. In our present environment, anger, rudeness and a severe lack of patience seem to be the new trend and how sad for our "modern society." We are supposed to be better. We are supposed to care. What happened? What happened to civility?
I have given this a lot of thought, as I'm wrapping gifts (Terribly I might add...) and looking at our lovely tree with ornaments that have such sentimental value that I tear up. I am remembering. It suddenly occurred to me that the reason behind the continual irrational behavior is, that it is been latent and festering for a very long time. Everything has a cycle to it and realistically, we are in a very negative phase. But it's a phase...not forever.
Right in time for Christmas, the government is shut down and I wonder how many us will really care about that. We should care. If we walked out of our jobs, took ourselves out of the equation for all the responsibilities we are supposed to care for, we would inevitably lose our jobs. I doubt our government will lose theirs. I was raised to understand that we don't walk away from our problems, we face them. We face them with grace and with purpose. Yuletide carols, sung by a choir...not just at Christmas but all year round.
I was five and bunking with my sisters on the eve of Christmas. I was too excited to sleep and my sister Jenny, in her calm and poise took me to the window and asked me to look up at the sky which was crystal clear. "See that Claude," she said softly. "That's the star of Bethlehem. That's the north star." I looked and I looked and in the instant of that moment, I realized that I was indeed part of something greater than myself. I've never forgotten that. In those days when I am self-absorbed and self-centered I remember that moment. We are not separate entities. We are connected.
As my husband faced the angry horns of those impatient drivers, cars and trucks filled with their idea of what giving is, I not only felt grateful that he came home in one piece, I felt grateful we try very hard never to behave that way and when we do, we honk at each other to keep the balance. Balance. The line of right versus forgiveness. The line of right versus peace. 2019 is swiftly coming toward us. How lucky we are to have all of the comforts that are not afforded by many. The government can shut down but it cannot make anyone forget that least most of its people have their priorities straight and for those who don't...they will understand soon enough that with a new year, comes new opportunity. The opportunity for change...the power of change keeps the balance. Our peace depends on how willing we are not to only see the other side but to accept the other side as well.
Keep the yuletide bright. Walk in someone else's shoes...be civil. You are never alone.
I was five and bunking with my sisters on the eve of Christmas. I was too excited to sleep and my sister Jenny, in her calm and poise took me to the window and asked me to look up at the sky which was crystal clear. "See that Claude," she said softly. "That's the star of Bethlehem. That's the north star." I looked and I looked and in the instant of that moment, I realized that I was indeed part of something greater than myself. I've never forgotten that. In those days when I am self-absorbed and self-centered I remember that moment. We are not separate entities. We are connected.
As my husband faced the angry horns of those impatient drivers, cars and trucks filled with their idea of what giving is, I not only felt grateful that he came home in one piece, I felt grateful we try very hard never to behave that way and when we do, we honk at each other to keep the balance. Balance. The line of right versus forgiveness. The line of right versus peace. 2019 is swiftly coming toward us. How lucky we are to have all of the comforts that are not afforded by many. The government can shut down but it cannot make anyone forget that least most of its people have their priorities straight and for those who don't...they will understand soon enough that with a new year, comes new opportunity. The opportunity for change...the power of change keeps the balance. Our peace depends on how willing we are not to only see the other side but to accept the other side as well.
Keep the yuletide bright. Walk in someone else's shoes...be civil. You are never alone.
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