Merry Christmas to all of you who celebrate. I hope if this is your wish, that you are enjoying a beautiful holiday in whatever way nourishes your soul. I send you all my love and wishes for a beautiful and peaceful holiday week. For just a little while perhaps we can all tune out the chaos of the world and tune into a greater truth – that love abides in a constant stream – there for the savoring and sharing. In every moment of every day, we get to choose that love or not. We get to birth it or not into this reality.
When I was in kindergarten, we made a little manger out of popsicle sticks and a little baby Jesus out of clay. The teacher took the clay Jesus’s home to bake them. I don’t remember much, but I do recall being extremely eager to get mine back. it was just a lump of class with a big round head, but to me, that was my babe in the manger. We took our mangers and our baby Jesus home with a little zip lock baggie filled with hay and instructions for our parents. Every day that we did a loving deed we got to place a piece of hay in the manger. On December 24th we got to see how much padding baby Jesus got based on whether or not we’d contributed our good deeds. I negotiated that extra good deeds meant extra hay. I wanted Him to sleep in comfort.
I think that feeling carries with me today. I still want the Divine to rest in comfort in my heart. I want to let my light shine whether the world is making it easy or not. I want to choose love even when others are hating on me because it feels better. I want to focus on all the amazing goodness in life even in a world where there is crazy division, amidst the most amazing cry for unity. I want to focus on well-being that abounds, even when the world tugs at us to focus on death, fear, and illness.
Death happens every day. So does birth.
Every day the light is birthed anew in billions of ways. In every kind smile or kind word, the light is brought into this world. In every choice to soothe or comfort oneself or another the light is birthed anew. In every small good deed, or even when we sit in silence, we make a comfy spot in our hearts for that light to be birthed again and again on this earth. We can block it or we can open to it, full throttle, eager to be the lovers, the lights, the kind souls that we truly are.
So take heart. I know this year has been challenging in so many ways for so many of you but in a moment of peace, you are blessed. In a moment of kindness, you are the blessing. In a moment of Silence, you are the stillness that allows the Divine to shine.
In the words of “Where are You Christmas” sung by Faith Hill, “If there is love in your heart and your mind You will feel like Christmas all the time”
Here are a few pointers on how to connect to the spirit of the season at any time…
1. Embrace the qualities of the season
Pick one of the qualities of the season – Peace, Joy, Celebration, Compassion, Generosity – and see if you can focus on it and embrace it all day long. Bring a little holiday into your heart anytime. Give anonymously. Pray for the world. Sit in silent peace. Celebrate a small occasion. Decorate with love. Overdo the goodness just a little bit. Let yourself call the qualities of the season into your life any day.
2. Get present and claim your Presence
During the holiday we often slow down to savor life – good food, friends, family, movies, games, walks in nature, or cozy blankets. We put on our ridiculous but fun fuzzy clothing and lighten up a little bit more than usual. We are more present to life and its goodness. In touch with our hearts, we are in the Present more than usual during the holiday.
We can get that Present anytime. On any day of the week, we can choose a softer and kinder focus on those around us. We can pay attention to the simple pleasures – the sound of snowfall, the brightness of a red berry in a stark landscape, the subtlety of peppermint in your cocoa, or the blessing of a meal contributed by compassionate strangers. In every moment we become more Present to life, we unwrap more and more of the love waiting to be born.
3. Imagine that light birthed in your heart
Each time you have a kind or caring through, say a kind or loving word or perform a kind or loving deed, get in the habit of imagining that light flowing to you, burning brightly, and then flowing out through you into the world. You are a blessing.
May you feel at peace today and always. If you are surrounded by those you love, savor the blessings. If not, shut your eyes and breathe and receive the magnificent love from heaven. In any case, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays. May our lights keep shining brightly.
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