Peace be Unto You All

It's Christmas and that means it's okay to believe in Angels.

When angels visit us mere Earthlings, they always bid us peace. That's a pretty cool thing to do. Think about it. If we actually were peaceful beings, everything would be perfect. Obviously there would be no war, no murder, and no hatred. These are the things we'd expect to get. You can also add in no child abuse. There would be no mental abuse of family members, coworkers, and strangers living in close quarters. Songs would be about good subjects instead of bemoaning the loss of innocence, loved ones, and jobs. Well, maybe jobs would still be lost in a peaceful world.

To me, the best thing about Christmas is the gift of peace. Christ is called the Prince of Peace. Peace is what you get when you listen to Silent Night in a candle lit church at midnight on Christmas Eve. Peace is what you feel when you sit quietly before your lit Christmas tree admiring the glow of each special ornament and remembering its significance. Peace is what you have when you know your children are safe and sound, tucked in their beds in your house. (For us who have children away at college or in the service or just out on their own, it's extra special when they come home and are asleep in their old room during the holidays.)

Ah, Christmas is about Peace. So, why is it so easy to forget this and fall prey to the marketing hype that precedes December 25? All those gifts will not bring peace to your loved ones. No. But, your love, attention, and affection will bring them peace. And, that costs you nothing more than being a good person and taking the time to make someone feel special.

It's Christmas Eve and my dinner with family is now over. I've cleaned up all the dishes and wanted to capture these thoughts. Peace. That is what I need. I hope you find peace within yourself too. Merry Christmas.

Olá from Buenos Aires

It is wonderful to be spending a week in the fabulous South American summer during the second week of December. Christmas decorations flutter in the late spring breezes and colorful blooms decorate the walkways and flower boxes admist holiday signage and songs in the many stores I've visited.

There are many many highlights of this trip, but the most profound thing to me is how gentile are the people. Things are changing here - the younger people are sporting jeans and tees, but more of the folk in the street are dressed for going out. It's not uncommon to see people wearing suites while shopping. And, when people meet, they greet each other with a kiss on the cheek and a kind word or two. I vaguely recall similiar customs from my very early childhood. I think we lost a part of our humanity when these habits became outdated.

Nothing's perfect and in Buenos Aires you must be on your guard against purse snatchers and pick pockets. One woman in our party had her purse ripped off her shoulder by a passing motorcyclist, which is quite common here. Yet, this is something you can protect yourself against, unlike a street thub mugging common at home in the U.S. I hope our present does not become the future for Argentina.

Thanks!

I let Thanksgiving get by without writing a word.

Oh, I have many things to be thankful for, so that's not why I was neglecting my journal entry. I really was conflicted this year. I'm trying to keep on the positive side and to write about up-lifting things. Then, I get on a rant and off I go spewing negativity into cyberspace.

It's far too easy to write about all we have to be grateful about on Thanksgiving. But, this year I was painfully aware of the commercially contrived nature of it all. Why? There were Christmas trees in Home Depot before Halloween! Give me a break!

I'm tired of being programmed to eat turkey on the fourth Thursday of November, to do all my holiday shopping on Black Friday, and to mail my cards and gifts by December X to guarantee their arrival in time for the holidays.

Sheesh! Don't people see what a plastic market-driven bunch of hype all this is. Even in this down economy, hordes of frantic shoppers were clogging the highways and byways this past weekend to catch that extra special bargin. All this hyper-drive shopping rush actually cost a Walmart employee his life on Friday. Yes, the crowd trampled him to death when the doors opened in the wee hours of the morning on Black Friday. OMG! No toy or electronic piece of crap is worth a human life!

So, I held off writing this piece because it's not a happy, joyful interspective journey reflecting all the goodness of the past, present and future. Nope. I am feeling quite sick -- of leftovers and the rush to get Christmas over with -- and it's only December 1.