The last carols have been sung, dollar store treasures unwrapped and devoured, remnants of Christmas feasts boiled up for soup, midnight masses faded, snow finally falls on our city and there is a fleeting moment to stop and take stock. Deep and even gratitude for friends and family adorns my silent night, and my heart nearly bursts with the profound joy that all this music brings.
I am grateful for the wonderful people that surround me, the prodigious and varied gifts that they share willingly and without question, and for everyone who willingly receives these handcrafted blessings.
I’ve spent a brilliantly varied three days with family and friends and strangers, drawn together from across the continent to celebrate this season, to eat, drink, sing and share stories from our common past. I’m freshly amazed at the technology that connects me to people far away – even those who I’ve never met. Today I chatted with a stranger -a French Canadian woman teaching music to Inuit children in Labrador whose Christmas experience was likely very different than my own. The miracle of Facebook provided me with a double bass player for my Children’s Messiah, reconnected me with a wonderful old friend, and allowed me to enjoy pictures of dear ones far away. And now I’m telling you about all this in a blog!
These little things are obviously not quite as profound as a star over Bethlehem, wise men from the east, or the birth of a Saviour, but I still stand in in awe at the wonder of all this, and give thanks.
Merry Christmas everyone!
I’m grateful for you, Stephanie. You are a dear and valued colleague, and I’m proud to know you. God bless you and yours.
I suppose it’s the end of another year that helps us recognize our great good fortune. Meeting you changed my life Catherine, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am for that fortunate turn of events! A very merry 5th day of Christmas to you and your family.