Christmas, Snow, and the Grinch

"And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,

Stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so?

It came without ribbons, it came without tags.

It came without packages, boxes or bags.

And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore.

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before ...

What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store?

What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?"

-Dr. Seuss, American Writer, from The Grinch Stole Christmas

December has arrived to Prague with a blast--a big blast of snow! This week, what began with around twelve inches has at least doubled to over two feet. This is all at a place where the locals say they get no snow, and where the schools offer no "snow days". It's quite an adventure!

For about one hour this week, the sun peeked out from behind its winter cloud covering and shone in all its glory over the snow.

The sun dazzling on the snow

No diamond can compete, I think. There is no more intense sparkle than of the sunlight on snowflakes.

Sparkle!

And the excitement of snow -- there are snow forts, and snow balls, and snow angels to make. And sledding, and skiing, and sliding to do. The snow makes toys and games from the store a bore. Instant JOY!

In the midst of the holiday shopping, buying and wrapping gifts, and attending holiday parties, it's easy to get swept away in the popular spirit of the season: busy-ness. But busy-ness, for me, also steals away the joy that can be found in the simple things, things that come without wrappings and ribbons, without tags and boxes, without the sparkle and glimmer of store-bought things with high price tags.

Maybe the real joy in Christmas can be found in spending time away from the busy-ness, giving of our time to others. Making snow forts. Throwing snow balls. Laughing, wrapped in the smaller, gentler things that Christmas brings. Like the Grinch so eloquently pointed out, the JOY found in Christmas must come from a whole lot more than wrappings-- a joy that started 2,000 years ago in a humble manger.

Starting the Conversation: This week, what are ways you can find to escape the run-around surrounding Christmas? How are you able to remember to embrace the simple in the midst of the media storm promoting sales for the holidays?

A Festive Angle on Life

Time.com featured a wonderful photo spread on Prague this week. Apparently, they’re naming Prague, and consequently the Czech Republic, as one of the “hippest” travel destinations. What a wonderful spotlight for a well-deserving country! So, now, I guess I can say I live in one of the hippest places in the world. Interesting …

From my perspective, Czech culture has a deep soul. Many days we wake to a rooster’s croon, see the magnificent silhouette of the Prague Castle etched out in the fog, watch the ultra-fashionable Czech women skimming over cobblestones in their four-inch heels, and hear the hum of a nation striving toward a more brilliant future. As if kicking the drab communistic grays goodbye, Czechs choose vivid colors for everything—cars, clothes, houses, art, and food.
This zest is catching, I think.

We ventured to Dresden, Germany, this past weekend—a city leveled to dust in the Second World War. There, we found beautiful reconstructed buildings, and a hearty Oktoberfest. What fun! Live music, plentiful beer, the aroma of bratwurst, and the crisp early autumn air … an experience to remember, for sure.

Honestly, I was surprised by the festive nature, and am continually positively impressed by the Czech and German and Polish people. For where I expected a down-trodden spirit routed from the years of oppressive Soviet communism, I’ve discovered bright eyes, hope, and a cheerful outlook on life.

I’d like to learn from their festive and generous spirit. Despite a dark and gloomy past, life and love can prevail, and move forward expressing an intoxicating joy for life.

Notes: A big thank you to my friend Martha for showing me the Time article. All photos of Dresden, Germany.

Catching Joys

Every evening about this time last year, I caught a Wow sight from my kitchen window.

Golden light drenched patches of our backyard, creating pools of beauty where the setting sun mingled with indigo shadows in a final play of Nature’s evening art. Daisies, birdbath, light, stillness—everything contributed to the dramatic beauty over ten minute spells last spring. I looked forward to watching it again this year.

This May, though, the scene happens to be quite different. Not only is the birdbath broken and lopsided, but the daisies surrounding the spot are only halfway in bloom this year. Unfortunately, other plants crowded the daisies out. The Wow sight is nothing of the same this year.

Isn’t that the same with life, though?

Occasions when time is sweet never seem to last, do they?

Time moves, today becomes yesterday, and yesterdays become memories. Time never is the same. Change, however, is inevitable, certain. Tomorrow will be different than today. Today will never be the same again. Wow moments strike once, maybe twice, then flutter away changed forever.

One of my most treasured friends has a wonderful saying:

Catch the JOY as it flies!

The joys in life may be fleeting, but they can be enjoyed, thoroughly, if we are open to them. Perhaps we can be aware of joy as it flitters by, and capture the delight accompanying it, to savor and remember and share. Like a vibrant butterfly, perhaps we can find life’s fragrance in the recognition of its uniqueness and in the celebration of the moment’s beauty. Catching the joy as it flies.

This year, the scene might be different, but it still is beautiful—everywhere, in different ways, if I just look for it … and catch the joy as it flies.

Brilliance

Last Sunday, the sun shone bright though the weather here in Ohio was frigid and snow covered the ground. At church that morning, the stained glass windows glowed with an exceptional brilliance. Certainly the sun and its effect on the blanket of snow had something to do with the blues and reds and yellows and purples blazing in living colors and etching an imprint into my mind. But also, the beauty of the light coming through the glass felt significant because of our Pastor’s sermon. He mentioned that in a day when the dark comes at us in the form of diminished bank accounts and home values, and the dark advances in the gloom and doom of the job market and a recessed economy, we are ever more in need of the Light coming to us at Christmas. The gospel of John begins with the Light—“The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” What good news for us and in our times!

Somehow, in the beauty of the stained glass, a connection can be made to life—maybe that we were created, each of us with a different hue and cut to offer the world. But when we join our lives and work together to bring light into the darkened world, a beauty of a new kind can be seen.

Several years ago, we thought as a family that we’d like to help a child in need, so we did some research and found a fantastic website that connects ordinary people with children in need, World Vision, found at http://www.worldvision.org/. We decided to cut back on a few things like Happy Meals and other trinket toys and use that monthly money toward supporting a child. When that child wrote us his first letter and sent a photograph, we were hooked. Barton in Kenya became part of our family. When World Vision gave us the chance to send an extra monetary gift for Christmas, we decided to cut back on the things we could get for ourselves and share some of that money with Barton and his family. Later, when we received a photograph showing how they’d used that Christmas gift money to meet their immediate needs, we were stunned. Not only had Barton’s family purchased a cow, but also two goats, a pair of work boots for the dad, a set of school clothing for Barton, a bag of rice, and a new stack of school books. We still have the photograph, along with the others from years in between, hanging on our refrigerator.

This Christmas season might be different than the rest. Sure, money all around is tighter for most. And the darkness seems to be getting the upper hand for many. But when we take our small and insignificant lights and put them together, the impact we can make on the dark is enough. Enough to make a difference in the world. Enough to bring new light into another’s life. And sometimes, from a simple gift, we can gain the gift of a whole new perspective and experience the immense joy of giving. Like a stained glass, the simple gifts, when added up and combined together, can change the landscape of the world.

Thank you in advance for sharing your stories in comments of the joy you found by sharing!