merry christmas . . . and a happy new year!
i've been so fortunate during the holidays; so blessed with good tidings of great joy. i am hoping the same for you!
i finally cleaned out my wallet from chinese food resturants during the year; i keep the fortunes i receive; mostly, because they seem to be a gift -- even when i have no idea what they mean! and i get to see how to say a word in another language. fortunes remind me of being with good people sharing a meal, enjoying conversation and sharing the joy. asian food is a gift for this season!
tradition has it that i usually greet the new year with chinese food and a movie. no clue about this year, but, there is a good chance that i'll receive another fortune!
what are you fortunate about? what sense of fortune do you get from tearing open a fortune cookie and trying to figure out its meaning?
so to help you along . . . here are my fortunes for 2010; not all, but a sampling . . .
a smile is nearly always inspired by another smile. friend: peng you
change your thoughts and you change the world. drink: liao
example is better than perception. sandwich: san ming zhi
love is as necessary to human beings as food and shelter. winter: dong tian
it is better to have beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear. {i can't wait to hear what some of you will do with this one!} vegetable: shu cai
a smile is a curve that can get a lot of things straight. foot: jiao
advancement will come with hard work. to eat: chi
courage comes through suffering. {not sure i agree; do you?} eye: yan jing
a ship in harbor is safe, but that's not why ships are built. {ah, i like that; risky!} drink: liao
i guess there was a need for me to learn 'drink' twice. wisdom comes from so many sources. i am blessed to be gifted with many friends who are very wise. thank you for making my year so complete! i look forward to 2011 with you, my true fortune. i'm so fortunate, cookie! peace. . .
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
all i want for christmas.....
someone asked me today what i wanted for christmas. what a question!
of course there are many 'things'; but things are just...well, 'things'.
and then, of course there are big things...an end of poverty; peace among all peoples; the opportunity for people to finish their schooling; the list is truly endless.
i have always been told that i am so hard to buy for....because i don't ask for anything.
maybe this year, what i really want is the opportunity of time. time seems so precious. the opportunity to sit with a beverage of choice (depending upon the time of day) and listen to my christmas collection of music; linger with a friend over a 'chat' we always said we'd do but haven't had time to do yet; go to a movie and dinner and actually talk about what we experience; have a philosophical discussion that changes the heart.
maybe this year is the opportunity to see the smile come to someone who has suffered loss or struggles with depression or wishes the holidays were over before they've actually come. we will do a christmas eve's eve serve -- not worship, but feeding guests from our neighborhood and food and after school program. the story of st. nicolas will be shared. offering time to others without feeling like i have a schedule to keep. smiles of the heart.
time. to look for the star. to listen for a baby's cry. to welcome those who are on a journey. to offer welcome, hospitality, a listening ear, a warm conversation, a cup of tea.
time; so precious. seems like time is the gift i'd really want this year. no exchanges. no refunds. no returns. this is my prayer, my christmas wish. time to get the world to care for one another again. without having the time and desire to care, we are lost.
it took time to move my mom to her new home; a nice assisted living community. re-arrange my schedule, pack the boxes, travel the distance through stormy skies, unpack the boxes, help the 'nesting' to begin. it took all day. but how rewarding. i didn't feel tired when i climbed into bed; rewarding was the feeling, i'd say. what could have been so emotional turned out to be just another journey of life; one that we may all make one day. time goes one; it does not wait.
we say that we have so 'little time' to do the things we'd like to do. maybe we need to stop and take the time rather than look for the time. could this be the time to take?
god comes near. time to welcome the gift of timeless hope, peace, love and joy. now is the time. now is...time.
of course there are many 'things'; but things are just...well, 'things'.
and then, of course there are big things...an end of poverty; peace among all peoples; the opportunity for people to finish their schooling; the list is truly endless.
i have always been told that i am so hard to buy for....because i don't ask for anything.
maybe this year, what i really want is the opportunity of time. time seems so precious. the opportunity to sit with a beverage of choice (depending upon the time of day) and listen to my christmas collection of music; linger with a friend over a 'chat' we always said we'd do but haven't had time to do yet; go to a movie and dinner and actually talk about what we experience; have a philosophical discussion that changes the heart.
maybe this year is the opportunity to see the smile come to someone who has suffered loss or struggles with depression or wishes the holidays were over before they've actually come. we will do a christmas eve's eve serve -- not worship, but feeding guests from our neighborhood and food and after school program. the story of st. nicolas will be shared. offering time to others without feeling like i have a schedule to keep. smiles of the heart.
time. to look for the star. to listen for a baby's cry. to welcome those who are on a journey. to offer welcome, hospitality, a listening ear, a warm conversation, a cup of tea.
time; so precious. seems like time is the gift i'd really want this year. no exchanges. no refunds. no returns. this is my prayer, my christmas wish. time to get the world to care for one another again. without having the time and desire to care, we are lost.
it took time to move my mom to her new home; a nice assisted living community. re-arrange my schedule, pack the boxes, travel the distance through stormy skies, unpack the boxes, help the 'nesting' to begin. it took all day. but how rewarding. i didn't feel tired when i climbed into bed; rewarding was the feeling, i'd say. what could have been so emotional turned out to be just another journey of life; one that we may all make one day. time goes one; it does not wait.
we say that we have so 'little time' to do the things we'd like to do. maybe we need to stop and take the time rather than look for the time. could this be the time to take?
god comes near. time to welcome the gift of timeless hope, peace, love and joy. now is the time. now is...time.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
the journey of advent
on my way to church today, i passed by a yard with stick people in the yeard. the owners had draped the figures to look like joseph escorting mary on a donkey. imagine what a little draping can do!
but it reminded me of the journey of advent in my family. sometime in the late 1960's, my family placed my sister's life-sized dolls in the front window, dressed as carolers; draping does wonders! the windows were outlined with big colored icicles, and our tree that year was one of those silver aluminum trees. my parents placed a flood light directed at the tree with a color wheel, that turned the silver tree shades of gold, red, green, and blue.
my mother spent hours placing tiny bulbs on the end of each branch -- if you'll remember, each branch ended in what looked like a flower. my parents were so proud; the only family on the block with a 'modern tree'. did i say it was the one and only year that we had such a tree; we had purchased it in a rummage sale. i wonder why someone would have given up such a tree in their sale?!
but that was also the year we had a dog, who like to bark at people in the front window...yes, the dolls fell on the flood light; to this day i am amazed we did not have a fire.
meanwhile, i put up the historical nativity scene; a painted box of bethlehem; more than a dozen plaster-of-paris figures painted brightly, although some of the paint had begun to chip off by then. a little night light hidden behind the star illuminated the scene. but you know?! once we turned out the lights, the tree and the nativity really did look like christmas.
we journey in advent; light guides our way. three candles representing hope, peace, and love have brightened this season. it isn't important if it is stick persons, aluminum trees, or nativity characters with their paint chipping off; god comes to us to brighten our lives, helping us find the way to joy.
do you have an advent memory you'd be willing to share? may this be your time to remember with thanksgiving....
but it reminded me of the journey of advent in my family. sometime in the late 1960's, my family placed my sister's life-sized dolls in the front window, dressed as carolers; draping does wonders! the windows were outlined with big colored icicles, and our tree that year was one of those silver aluminum trees. my parents placed a flood light directed at the tree with a color wheel, that turned the silver tree shades of gold, red, green, and blue.
my mother spent hours placing tiny bulbs on the end of each branch -- if you'll remember, each branch ended in what looked like a flower. my parents were so proud; the only family on the block with a 'modern tree'. did i say it was the one and only year that we had such a tree; we had purchased it in a rummage sale. i wonder why someone would have given up such a tree in their sale?!
but that was also the year we had a dog, who like to bark at people in the front window...yes, the dolls fell on the flood light; to this day i am amazed we did not have a fire.
meanwhile, i put up the historical nativity scene; a painted box of bethlehem; more than a dozen plaster-of-paris figures painted brightly, although some of the paint had begun to chip off by then. a little night light hidden behind the star illuminated the scene. but you know?! once we turned out the lights, the tree and the nativity really did look like christmas.
we journey in advent; light guides our way. three candles representing hope, peace, and love have brightened this season. it isn't important if it is stick persons, aluminum trees, or nativity characters with their paint chipping off; god comes to us to brighten our lives, helping us find the way to joy.
do you have an advent memory you'd be willing to share? may this be your time to remember with thanksgiving....
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
the merced sunstar wanted to publish this....
at the last moment, the merced sunstar, our daily newspaper, wanted a short article about christmas; asked for on the day of our bazaar (saturday) and due by monday. so, i wrote one, and i thought, 'hum....why not use this for my blog this week?!' so, here you go....
i had a colleague recently who commented that her christmas was going to be slim this year; just not enough money to do all the special things she usually like to do for her family and friends. the person to whom she was speaking responded, "that is such a first world problem".
'that is such a first world problem'. what do you make out of a statement like that?
we discover as we drive up to the starbuck's window, that we have neglected to refill our 'red' card, and we that to use our atm card or, heaven forbid, cash! 'that is such a first world problem'. shout-it-out didn't get the grass stains out of our child's soccer uniform, the cost of gas changed to $3.o9 per gallon, and someone brought jellied cranberries instead of fresh cranberry sauce to thanksgiving. 'these are such first world problems.'.
adequate health care is still not really available to the masses; drugs sold on our streets; illiteracy. these are less 'first world problems', but do we remark about them in the same way? we do not. yet these are issues that affect people thought-out the world.
mary with child and joseph had to travel away from their home to be counted at a time we call christmas. they were required by what was then considered a 'first world' government. that government was not concerned that mary would soon deliver, and that such a trip would be difficult and inconvenient.
when we think about the phrase 'that is such a first world problem', we acknowledge that we are a people who are so very privileged. we have forgotten to reload our starbuck's card because we have our mind on other things -- hitting that big sale; remembering to secure 150 christmas stamps; deciding what to wear to the new year's eve party. which one of us thinks about taking our about-to-deliver partner to the brand new mercy hospital on a donkey? 'that is such a first world problem'.
in a time such as this, may we think about worldly issues -- a birth that is not easy; how to offer the gift of clean water to a family who must travel on foot two miles to a watering hole that is not fit for drinking; living in peace with our neighbors. these are the christmas gifts that will bring understanding and 'joy to the world'.
i had a colleague recently who commented that her christmas was going to be slim this year; just not enough money to do all the special things she usually like to do for her family and friends. the person to whom she was speaking responded, "that is such a first world problem".
'that is such a first world problem'. what do you make out of a statement like that?
we discover as we drive up to the starbuck's window, that we have neglected to refill our 'red' card, and we that to use our atm card or, heaven forbid, cash! 'that is such a first world problem'. shout-it-out didn't get the grass stains out of our child's soccer uniform, the cost of gas changed to $3.o9 per gallon, and someone brought jellied cranberries instead of fresh cranberry sauce to thanksgiving. 'these are such first world problems.'.
adequate health care is still not really available to the masses; drugs sold on our streets; illiteracy. these are less 'first world problems', but do we remark about them in the same way? we do not. yet these are issues that affect people thought-out the world.
mary with child and joseph had to travel away from their home to be counted at a time we call christmas. they were required by what was then considered a 'first world' government. that government was not concerned that mary would soon deliver, and that such a trip would be difficult and inconvenient.
when we think about the phrase 'that is such a first world problem', we acknowledge that we are a people who are so very privileged. we have forgotten to reload our starbuck's card because we have our mind on other things -- hitting that big sale; remembering to secure 150 christmas stamps; deciding what to wear to the new year's eve party. which one of us thinks about taking our about-to-deliver partner to the brand new mercy hospital on a donkey? 'that is such a first world problem'.
in a time such as this, may we think about worldly issues -- a birth that is not easy; how to offer the gift of clean water to a family who must travel on foot two miles to a watering hole that is not fit for drinking; living in peace with our neighbors. these are the christmas gifts that will bring understanding and 'joy to the world'.
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