December 20, 2003 12:37 P.M.
There are a lot of things as sure as death and taxes�
�Christmas coming sooner than you are ready for it to arrive. That�s another thing. I bet you can make a long list of things that inevitably arrive in your life, ready or not. Birthdays, (yours and others for whom you have not yet purchased a gift), doctor/dentist appointments; monthly bills; (should you be pregnant�birth); deadlines; old age�have I sufficiently depressed you? And one could go on and on. I won�t.
But we are on the doorstep of Christmas once again. Somehow, it always works out. Everything comes together. And if not, - oh well. Life goes on.
Christmas is a mixed bag for all of us. I started to say, �for so many people.� But it is�for all of us. We have good memories, (why is it that the thought of Christmas always evokes memories�) and we have those, not so good. Some Christmas seasons have become signposts in our lives because of momentous occurrences, which took place at that time.
Recently I heard a radio talk show host discussing this subject with his listeners. �Why are so many people sad or depressed at Christmastime?�
Each of you would have your own answer to that question. You optimists would reply that it is not true for you. Christmas is always a joyous time. And I know a couple of people like that. Others of you would say, well, most Christmases are a happy time for me. And you are the lucky ones. But others of you would have personal responses to the question, which would be very poignant.
For me, over my entire lifetime, the sadness which was peculiar to Christmas always had to do with separation from loved ones. I know it is a myth�but Christmas just seems to be the time when we all are �supposed to be together.� And life just isn�t that way.
When I was just a young mother, we moved over 3,000 miles across country from the rest of our family�I not only felt the sadness of separation at Christmas, but a measure of guilt, that I had moved so far from �the old folks at home�. (My Kentucky is showing � you know, Steven Foster, and all that� never mind.)
Once again I have to get centered on the one true element in happiness. Gratitude. �Gratitude is the primary necessity for happiness.� No gratitude�no contentment. And gratitude can be a serendipity�just surprises you at an unexpected moment�or it can be an act of the will. Most often, it is the latter. At least for me, that is true.
Someone said recently, �You don�t become an adult just because you reach the legal age of adulthood. You become an adult by making adult choices.� Sometimes, I feel like a child. At those times, it is not easy, but I really want to make adult choices. Gratitude is one of them. Especially at Christmastime.
Gosh, I didn�t start out intending to go off in this direction. In fact I had no direction in mind. I guess I have rambling thoughts today.
And speaking of rambling thoughts, in writing this journal, I have discovered something interesting. It is this: when I most intensely �feel� what I am writing, and create what to me, is a story�as in the �Tale of Two Stars�, or the 9-11 piece that I wrote, or such, I seem to get the least feedback from readers. When I just sit down and do some sort of �stream of consciousness� type of writing, it seems to elicit the most response. I have wondered at the reason behind this. Any comments?
I will be leaving Christmas Day to go to my son�s house for a couple of days, and then on over to my daughter�s home in NV. I will not be returning until the weekend of January 9/10. I will not be on-line during that time. I may write another entry before I leave, but if not, I truly pray for all of you a Blessed Christmas. One that is filled with gratitude and joy. And one that will create wonderful memories, for the years to come.
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Text � copyright 2003 - 2008 The Homespun Philosopher
2008