Are We In A Hurry For Christmas?

We count the days, mark our calendars in red ink, make a list of what gifts to buy for friends and family, plan on what menu to cook on Christmas Day. And we are waiting with bated breath when the day will come. Yes, it will come soon! And we say that Christmas is just around the corner. So we get busy, we are frantic that we won’t be able to do the things on our Christmas list , we are frantic that we would not be able to hang those beautiful lanterns and Christmas decor which we painstakingly chose, to the point of having Christmas motif every year. We think of where to place the Christmas lights, the more, the better, here or there, it does not matter as long as we have at least something to remind us of Christmas. But after all this frenzy, we sometimes forget why we are celebrating.

Sometimes though, we are in a hurry to celebrate Christmas. Some people put up their Christmas trees with all the lovely trimmings as early as October but by the time Christmas comes, they are too tired or even too drunk to welcome the day with joy. We are too taken by parties, shopping, new clothes, new toys and all things that to us spell Christmas. In the process, we tend to forget the simplicity of the Christ Child. How have you celebrated the event in the past?

The Child Jesus is the most awaited guest. So we prepare ourselves for His coming. And it’s just like waiting for some important guests in our homes, we clean the house, put out our best silver wares, make the occasion a truly lovely celebration. But what Jesus wants is to prepare our hearts for His coming, that is where He wants to dwell – deep in our hearts.

“The angel said to them, “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; 11 for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:11-12).

Dear Jesus, make me worthy to receive You this Christmas.

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The Beauty Of Dreams

So how do you give someone a piece of sky? Dreams never end just because your life turned upside down all of a sudden. Dreams never end just because something unexpected touched you and you felt the pain.  Dreams never end just because a few friends turned their backs on you when you needed them most.  The unfairness seemed magnified at some point in your life but then you realized  how lucky you are to still be alive and enjoying another sunny morning, enjoying a few moments of peace just looking at the sunset, dreaming maybe of someone giving you a piece of sky.

My favorite nook in our garden in the province.

I realized that in life, there are more things to be thankful for than to complain about.  There are more things that make  you happy than  things that make you sad and lonely. The  trick is to open your eyes to the beauty of everything around you.  My illness taught me many things. Everyday is  something special, you have to embrace it as if it were the last day of your life.  The journey may not be as smooth as you want it to be, but it is in the struggles which make you stronger than most, being able to face another day with a wide grin and a grateful thanks that you survived the hurdles along life’s way.

Life is good. Believe in the beauty of your dreams.

Learning To Let Go

When the heart chooses to let go

the happiness that seems to be so out of reach

finally shows its face.

And you dream again.

You see the dawn breaking

promising a better tomorrow.

And when the heart chooses to let go,

There’s a ray of sunshine waiting

And a new day  unfolding

And you smile at the thought –

You are free at last.