happy new year

Questions for Christmas Eve!

Once again it’s time for mistletoe and carols and the many splendored gifts of Christmas. And, once again, the holiday will find us each exactly where we are. 

For some, it will be the occasion for a happy reunion (something we value today as never before!). For others, there will be absences to grieve, a loneliness that somehow feels vaster, or some thorny family dynamic they’ll have the opportunity to revist. The holidays are a great bundle of emotions, the most difficult of which are liable to get lost in the gift-giving frenzy. Can we make room to bring our full humanity to our festive table?

 I believe we can. I believe the beautiful story of the child born in a manger, on a bed of straw, speaks to all of us, whether or not we are Christians, or even religious. It invites us to embrace what is most vulnerable in each of us, to make a soft bed for our emotions, even the most challenging ones, especially the challenging ones, and to invite them to the feast. 

It’s with this intent that I’ve prepared these questions. They are meant to help us connect with our own deepest truths, and thus with those around us. You can answer them privately, in writing, or choose one to share at the table, with openness and curiosity.

I wish you beautiful encounters with others, with yourselves.

And a beautiful birthing of the heart.

 Merry Christmas!