Tag: reflection

The Beginning of a New Year

nyrefThe beginning of the New Year is seen as a transition for many of us. It’s a time to step back from our life to reconsider where we’ve been and where we want to go. There may be a poignant awareness of the losses and struggles that occurred, as well as an appreciation of our good fortune in celebrating the start of yet another year.

We hope that the changing of the year’s digit will rescue us from past habits and holes that we have dug for ourselves. We dream of changes that will make us happier and healthier. We make a list of resolutions in the hope that our willpower will be strong enough to launch us into a new way of living.

But in moving from one year to the next, take moment to pause. Pause to celebrate. Pause to reflect. Pause to take inventory. And pause to see what you can learn from this past year. Self-reflection is a powerful process. It’s strongly encouraged by many of the world’s great religious traditions and by some of the wisest of our ancestors and has many benefits.

For most of us, self-reflection is a missing piece of our lives. We’re very busy. We’re tired. We look for rest through books, beds, television and the Internet. The idea of spending several hours or more in your living room, sitting quietly and reflecting on the past year, seems strange and a bit uncomfortable. But in the waning hours of the year, we have a wonderful opportunity to excavate our lives and reconsider what we wish to do with the time we have left.

As you reflect on your life, you’ll notice that certain ideas for making changes or doing things differently will naturally arise. You can make note of these, keep them in mind as they can become useful as resolutions or goals.

But for; now, just allow yourself to sit with your life as it is. Seeing our life “as it is” can be more than the foundation of personal change – it can be the basis for faith, compassion for others, and a profound sense that we are loved and cared for more deeply than we have ever realized.

Best wishes as you enter the new year & may God grant you serenity, peace and strength.

Adapted

Christmas is for Love

woodboxChristmas is for love.  It is for joy, for giving and sharing, for laughter, for reuniting with family and friends. But, mostly Christmas is for love.

Matthew was a 10 year old orphan who lived with his aunt, a bitter woman greatly annoyed with having to care for him. She never failed to remind young Matthew, if it hadn’t been for her generosity, he would be a vagrant, homeless waif.  Still, with all the scolding and chilliness at home, he was a sweet and gentle child.

I had not noticed Matthew particularly until he began staying after class each day to help me straighten up the room.  We did this quietly and comfortably, not speaking much, but when we did talk, Matthew spoke mostly of his mother.  Though he was quite young when she died, he remembered a kind, gentle, loving woman who always spent time with him.

As Christmas drew near however, Matthew failed to stay after school.  I looked forward to his coming, but the days passed and he continued to scamper hurriedly from the room after class,  one afternoon I told him how I had missed him, and his large brown eyes lit up eagerly as he replied, ‘Did you really miss me?’

I explained how he had been my best helper, ‘I was making you a surprise,’ he whispered.  ‘It’s for Christmas.’ With that, he became embarrassed and dashed from the room.

Finally came the last school day before Christmas.  Matthew crept slowly into the room late that afternoon with his hands concealing something behind his back.  ‘I have your present,’ he said timidly when I looked up.  ‘I hope you like it.’  He held out his hands, and there lying in his small palms was a tiny wooden box.

‘It’s beautiful, Matthew.  What’s in it?’ I asked opening the top to look inside.  ‘Oh you can’t see what’s in it,’ he replied, ‘and you can’t touch it, or taste it or feel it, but mother always said it makes you feel good all the time, warm on cold nights and safe when you’re all alone.’

I gazed into the empty box.  ‘What is it, Matthew’ I asked gently, ‘that will make me feel so good?’

‘It’s love,’ he whispered softly, ‘and mother always said it’s best when you give it away.’ He turned and quietly left the room.

So now I keep a small box crudely made of scraps of wood on the piano in my living room and only smile when inquiring friends raise quizzical eyebrows when I explain to them there is love in it.

Yes, Christmas is for gaiety, mirth, song, and for good and wondrous gifts.  But mostly, Christmas is for love.