The Reason for the Season

Neale Donald Walsch wrote on Christmas Day, 

I believe God wants you to knowthat

the reason so much of humanity commemorates

this day is that so much of

humanity seeks to give and receive love.

During this holy time, know that all times are holy,

That every religion holds truth,

that each tradition is sacred,

and that it is in the simple sharing of love that

we make our beliefs come alive, and our dreams come true.

Years ago, I was so into Christmas that I had four trees in our house. We had the main tree in the family room, a smaller table-top tree in the living room, a four-foot Victorian style tree in our master bedroom, and a 3 foot tree in our daughter’s bedroom. In the main bath the shower curtain was swapped out for a Christmas motif, the toilet seat cover had Santa on it, and even the tissue box was in the style of a gingerbread house. 

Shopping and wrapping and baking occupied every free waking moment for weeks and weeks….

What a welcome contrast to now hold the awareness of this season as one about giving and receiving love.

Do you notice how much more considerate drivers can be as the hustle and bustle reaches a fever pitch?

What about those who buy for a Christmas family, have a tree planted in a national forest, or provide chicks or sheep through Heifer International?

Over the past many years, as I have found myself on a much more inner journey, I can see it all with appreciation. I appreciate those who are true to what has heart and meaning for them. While out doing the last-minute shopping for stocking stuffers with my daughter, it was tender to remember all with love.

I remember the Christmas plays at school, the candlelight services at church, the family dinners at with my mom and dad and sisters and our kids. I remember the Christmas when I was five. My dad’s boss provided our Christmas of previously-loved toys.

All these memories are precious gifts. Nothing bought or wrapped or delivered compares. Faith, hope, and love—the greatest of these is love.

As Neale Donald Walsch finishes his message for the day:

Let this Christmas Day remind us that Christ came to

invite us to offer love to all humankind, and to

open the door of God's kingdom to every soul.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Luminosity

No matter how long the room has been dark,

an hour or a million years,

the moment the lamp of awareness is lit the entire room becomes luminous.

You are that luminosity.

You are that clear light.

-Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche

Time passes, and we view each new moment through the moments we have lived. Painful moments, joyful moments, busy moments, leisured moments. As a passenger on a train ride, we are watching the landscape out the window. We see the fields and the towns. We hear the call of the owl and watch the autumn leaves fall. Through it all, we are more than what we see or say or feel or know. 

Today the sun was shining, then it wasn't. 

 

Today it was snowing and blowing and the roads were coated with ice.

Then they weren't. 

Tonight the moon was big and bright, and now it isn't. 

While everything outer waxes and wanes, you are that unchanging luminosity. 

You are that clear light. 

Tonight I am thankful. 

Tomorrow I will recall today. 

 

From Awakened by Stirrings: 

Will we come to our senses and honor the will of the creator? "The greatest of these is love." There is no way to know where we are going. We must move into the darkness of the preconceived ideas and from the very center of the soul weave together the threads of bodies, minds, and spirit.

Never again shall we walk this way. We must not look back, for fear will surely grab us and yank us into denial. We must let our heart guide us where our minds would not dare to let us go… Thereby we will find a way to invite others to join… Where all will remember that we were made to be free!

The Whole World Kin

Yesterday we received our first Christmas card, from Glenda Norris. Glenda goes all out, shopping, decorating, and celebrating life. The image on the card is a very lovely owl, and the quotation by William Shakespeare is equally lovely: One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. The card is from the Arbor Day Foundation, and the inscription reads, "In your name, a tree is being planted in one of our National Forests." What a beautiful, thoughtful, insightful gift.

I was pondering this relationship humans have with nature when I read some excerpts from Listening to Your Inner Voice, by Douglas Bloch. Bloch writes about a young minister complimenting a farmer, saying that God had blessed him with an incredible piece of land. The farmer is said to have replied, "Yes, but you should have seen the mess it was when God had it to Himself!"

It appears to be quite obvious that life works best when we work with the divine.

This past summer I spent four weekends in an experiential workshop on how you can activate and maintain higher states of consciousness. Why is this significant for all? We are partners in the vision and creation of our world.

Last weekend while we were enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday with our family in Tennessee, my older grandson, Brad, stopped by his mom's. On TV was a "reality show" about extreme couponing. I had never seen such a thing, and was appalled at the garage full of stuff, wondering why one would want 30 years supply of toothpaste. An extra tube, yes, but hundreds?

In about ten minutes of watching, Brad had an inspiration to fill food pantries with staples and stock home shelters with toiletries—with absolutely no cash outlay! He could form a not-for-profit program that trained volunteers how to use the process, and suddenly extreme couponing moved from excessive hording to a practical service to humanity.

As I was working on this blog, Joel sent a link for one of the most popular TEDTalks of all time, Simon Sinek speaking about great leadership. Using Apple™ and Martin Luther King, Jr. as examples of great leaders, Simon describes the common threads of the most inspired and inspiring individuals or organizations. He says, "People don't by what you do, they buy why you do it."

The image on the card is a very lovely owl, and the quotation by William Shakespeare is equally lovely:

.

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.

I may not ever know for sure exactly why Glenda invested her money to plant a tree in a National Forest in our name, but as Simon Sinek says, "The goal is not to do business with everybody who needs what you have, the goal is to do business with people who believe what you believe." 

Obviously, Glenda and I believe what William believes...

Extra Mile

No one has ever become poor by giving. ~ Anne Frank

Thanksgiving Day 2013 did not unfold exactly as we expected, but there certainly was plenty to be thankful for. Late Wednesday afternoon, we found out that the family member we had expected to be hosting our traditional feast had been in the hospital with kidney stones. Fortunately, a stop at the store on the way home from work by my son-in-love, Doug, produced a turkey and the makings for dressing. 

Thursday morning started early, as we participated in Borodash (a fundraiser walk/run). It was a brisk 19 degrees when our warm hearts gathered at the start line with a dozen or more of our family members, including all of our grandones! Imagine walkers and runners—some clad as pilgrims, others as Indian maidens, and a wide variety of turkey hats!

Besides the sheer joy of being alive and spending time together, a highlight of the event was waiting to welcome the last walker across the finish line, a veteran who had one leg. It is hard to feel anything but blessed when you see how much some people are able to do with their lives, in spite of challenges along the way. 

So after the Borodash and breakfast at Cracker Barrel, we headed to the house to begin preparing our Thanksgiving meal. We began slicing apples and making preparations to get the pie into the oven. We had planned to take the famous Dutch apple pie—using a recipe cobbled together by my daughter, Stacey, following the death of her Grandma Smith. This year (hoping to move closer to the desired results of my mom’s pie), I brought a different recipe with me.

We realized we did not have any cornstarch. The Publix around the corner was closed so their employees (including our grandson, Adam) could enjoy Thanksgiving with their families. Walmart is quite a bit farther away, and likely would have been filled with shoppers getting a head-start on the Black Friday specials. The apple slices were already turning brown (and we were waiting for the pie to come out of the oven for the turkey to go in). 

Only needing ¼ cup of cornstarch, I sent my daughter (Stacey), and husband (John), and granddogger (Baxter), out to knock on neighbor’s doors. The first few houses, no one answered the door. The next house is occupied by a Hispanic family. The parents’ English would best be described as little-to-none. The young daughter tried unsuccessfully to translate. With the dad on his hands and knees mopping the kitchen floor in preparation for their own guests, the family graciously invited Stacey in, opened all their cupboards for her to look for what she needed. Even so, she returned without any cornstarch. 

We were in the process of trying to make substitutions, when we heard a knock on the door. The young girl and her younger brother were standing there, having been sent over with a container of what turned out to be flour. Stacey told them she had flour, but thanked them for trying. 

A few minutes later, another knock on the door, and they had returned with this box!

As Stacey and I took out the needed amount, thanked them, and turned back to the preparations of the pie, I was choking back tears thinking of loving and generous hearts that would motivate you to go to that extent to help someone. I was reminded of the stories of Jesus about going the extra mile. 

I may never know the details of the conversations between this young girl and her family, but I will always remember the unexpected gifts of this Thanksgiving Day.