By Fr. Eugene Hemrick
Yeshua Fellow
Perhaps it was the gloomy weather, disturbing news or a touch of holiday blues causing me to feel glum. “Time to get out and moving," I told myself.
I departed Washington DC and arrived in Lake Oswego, OR, for a Christmas visit with family. My spirits soared upon experiencing its neighborhood engulfed in a Christmas wonderland of colorful lights and stunning decorations. House after house was announcing: “Christmas time is now. Get into the spirit, imbibe in the joy of gratitude for this sacred feast.”
A quote from poet and artist Jonas Mekas summarizes this sentiment beautifully: "In a meadow full of flowers, you cannot walk and breathe those smells and see all those colors and remain angry. We have to support the beauty, the poetry of life.”
At one time or other we all experience life's weight wearing down our spirit. What best might we employ to counter this?
When we are down, we tend to crawl up inside our own little world. Christmas, on the other hand, is an opportunity to immerse ourselves in an uplifting world and avoid the poor-me syndrome.
This is accomplished by practicing the virtues of goodness, benevolence, kindness, the joy of helping another and alms giving.
More than ornamental lights and dazzling decorations, Christmas is a precious moment filled with divine poetry about God’s love, teaching us the ultimate means for achieving joy, gratitude and happiness --- the happiness of feeling appreciated, blessed and sharing God's love and goodness with another.