Something Bittersweet.

I Love Christmas!
I Love the Season and I Love Kindness and I Love all that is Celebrated!
I Love Baking and Holiday Entertaining and Playing and Fun with Friends and Loved Ones!
I Love the Tree!
I Love the Decorations!
Most of All, I Love the twinkle in my Partner’s Eyes and how he is all Aglow throughout the Season!
I Love the GiftGiving and the Magic and the Laughter and how awestruck people seem when they enter our humble little apartment and see it decked out on the scale of Rockefeller Center!
I Love that my Partner prepares Gifts for the Mail Person and the UPS Delivery Person, and the people who work in the LaundryMat and the Bank and the Diner across the Street…
I Love that he always makes sure I don’t leave the house without a few small chocolate Santas in my pocket in case we see a child or a train conductor or salesclerk who needs a smile!
I Love Grace, an Asian Woman at our Local Post Office, who was presented with one of his Chocolate Santa “Neighborhood Gifts” and was so overwhelmed that she held it up for all to see and began shouting to everyone with such Glee, “I Got a Merry Christmas!!! I Got a Merry Christmas!”

I am tired!

Lots of Cooking. Lots of Cheese.

Physically Wiped Out!
It has been Twelve Days of Festivity and Entertaining — Lots of Cooking and Washing Pots and Pans!
Work starts up again fairly heavy on Monday.
Classes begin again soon.
There is much to prepare and do and set in motion.
And first, this weekend, we need to take down the Tree and carefully pack away Rockefeller Center until next year.
It’s a lot of effort!
But it is So Good for my Soul!
I Love It!
Soul Work!
Do you have Soul Work that is Good for you?
It is sometimes physically demanding, isn’t it?
I find that it mostly is.
But that’s OK!
I always Feel Good doing it! There is such Great Satisfaction in the Smiles and Shouts of Glee and the Twinkle in a Loved One’s Eye!
So, even if you have already taken down your Christmas Tree,
Or if you don’t particularly celebrate Twelfth Night,
Or Christmas at all,
Or if it feels like taking down the Christmas Decorations is a sad and daunting event…
Is there some Soul Work that you can Celebrate?
We all have things we do that ignite the Souls of Others,
And thereby, our own!
We all have something at which we know ourselves to be particularly Good —
Something that brings Light to the World!

Our Little Town of Bethlehem

Well, perhaps you have noticed, in some ways the World seems to be in a somewhat Dark Place these days…
And we all sure could benefit from some of your Light!
So, I encourage you,
On this Twelfth Night,
To do a little Soul Work!
I encourage you throughout this New Year,
To do a Lot of Soul Work!
Allow it to Cost You!
Allow your Soul’s Expansion!
Engage in Activities that bring you JOY!
Bring Light!
Sing Out!
Make a Joyful Noise!
Awaken!
Pleasure!
Give Unnecessary Gifts!
Promote Laughter!
Arouse Joy!
Delight in the World around You!
Initiate Happiness!
Action Before Inspiration!
And LOVE!
Always LOVE!

Big Bright Red Glass Balls of Light adorn our Nativity this year

I confess that I feel a bit broken and battered,
Even after the considerable Triumphs of 2017,
And the true evidence of Wonderment and Delight to which I bear witness, every day!
I am slightly worse for the wear.
But I am not defeated.
And my Soul Work is not yet done!

Is there some Gift we can give to a Stranger Today?
Or to someone we formerly considered a Non-Person?
Or to someone who may be feeling a bit battered and broken themselves?
By encouraging and buoying them up,
We do Wonders for OurSelves!
Among other things, we discover ourselves as Source!
We tap into Source Energy!

The Delicious and Festive Wreath Cookies my Partner makes every Year — his StepGrandMother’s Recipe!

And we Radiate Outwards a Light which is Infinite and Divine and resides within us!
We experience this Light by Extending it Outwards!
And that is one of the Great Gifts of these Twelve Days of Christmas!
Every Light Bulb on the Tree,
Every Candle Flame,
Every sparkle
Every Bubble Light
And Lighted Doorway Garland
And FiberOptic Flicker…

Every Touch of Brightness
Is there to remind us of the Light Within Us!
Now, to the Year Ahead,
And the Soul Work of extending that Light Outward
And sharing it with Others,
Eradicating any Darkness they may carry with them,

Our FIberOptic Wreath from my Brother-in-Law, one of our Favorite Christmas Decorations!

So that they can ignite their own Light,
And Shine it outward,
Into the World!

Lighted Doorway Garlands brighten our Home

I grew up in the Catholic Church!
There were rituals at Christmas and Easter,
Which involved Everyone receiving a single candle as we entered,
And the priest entering the back of the Darkened Church with a single Candle Flame,
Lighting one other.
And each person offered a light from their flame to the next person’s candle,
Until the whole cathedral was Ablaze with Light!
All from one single seemingly inconsequential candle flame.

No matter how broken and battered we may feel,
No matter how insignificant our Light may seem,
Let us Offer it, even just to the one person standing closest to us.
Just Think, with even this infinitesimal bit of Soul Work,
How Marvelous the Light
We can Create!
We can Light the World!
Epiphany!

I have sent you Nothing But Angels

Happy Twelfth Day of Christmas!
Happy New Year!

# # #