Day Seven: A Blessing for Equilibrium

Day Seven: My Spiritual Director shared the following with me today, as a way of closing our time together. I’m sharing it with you, as a way of closing out this first week of Summer.

A Blessing for Equilibrium

Like the joy of the sea coming home to shore,

May the music of laughter break through your soul.

As the wind wants to make everything dance,

May your gravity be lightened by grace.

Like the freedom of the monastery bell,

May clarity of mind make your eyes smile.

As water takes whatever shape it is in,

So free may you be about who you become.

As silence smiles on the other side of what’s said,

May a sense of irony give you perspective.

As time remains free of all that it frames,

May fear or worry never put you in chains.

May your prayer of listening deepen enough

To hear in the distance the laughter of God.

~ John O’Donohue ~

Cindy Lou Who

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Fah who for-aze! Dah who dor-aze!? Come on, sing along.

I’ll admit it. Last year I had a serious case of Bah Humbug.* If it weren’t for the fact that we decorate our Christmas Tree first as a Birthday Tree for the boy’s birthday, the tree wouldn’t have even gone up. Decorating? If you count dust and assorted piles of laundry strewn around the house. Then, check! Decorating done. The only baking I did was the annual Chocolate Pie, and only because revolution was threatened if I didn’t. It’s not that I didn’t want to filled with the Spirit of Christmas. I just couldn’t summon my holiday mojo. It was on strike and with good reason.

Part of it was that I bit off way more than I should have in re-doing the boy’s room for his 13th birthday. And part of it was the prospect that we could lose our house due to a severe pay cut and a troubled economy. The reality of our situation was overwhelming. I suspect everyone struggles a bit during the holidays, how to pay for it all, how to balance expectations and the inevitable stress. How to avoid the mall after December 15th. But our struggle with the bank only heightened the experience. And it had me wishing for June.

It’s not much different this year. We’re still waiting on the bank. We call only to be told we’re “in process”. The Grinch has a new name (and it rhymes with BofA). Breathing in. Breathing out. Wait, wait, hurry up and wait.  Most of last winter was wasted on worry; today we’re just moving through our lives. Because worrying changes little except the contours of your face.

So, this year I’m banishing the bah humbug.  I’m summoning my inner Cindy Lou Who and serving notice to the Grinch– Our home is a home because we are together, not because we own it. I’m doing the laundry and decorating the halls. I’m liberally applying sugar sprinkles on edible surfaces. Mostly, I’m choosing to focus on the hands I have to hold. And I’m keeping faith that these little choices will add up.

How about you? What are you doing this year to foster the holiday spirit?

* The holidays are often a trigger for depression. When is it more than just “the blues”? Know the signs.  If you or a loved one is struggling with depression, please seek help. You are not alone. ~~Wende