"So this is Christmas. And what have you done?
Another year over, and a new one just begun."

Of course you recognize the lyrics as sang by John Lennon. When first he sang his "War is Over" tribute to peace, it was a hit, for it resonated with the public's desire to find meaning in a holiday season overcome by fighting, and in recent history, commercial materialism.

Lennon's plea to stop all the fighting and see a world united in a happy new year is as poignant today as it was then. As we find ourselves at the beginning of another New Year, in the midst of another war, in a world still struggling with inequality, poverty, and a lack of spirit, have you considered lately what you could be doing different? So, if we reflect on your most recent holiday, what did it mean to you? This Christmas (or Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa or what have you...) we all let ourselves get so crazy about things. In the midst of it all, have you stopped to ask yourself recently what it may mean to you?

If you felt "bah humbug" about the whole thing, blaming the media and the advertisers for ruining the spirit of the holiday season, perhaps you've allowed outside influences to fill a void created by a society unsure of its true meaning. Regardless of which holiday it is you actually celebrate, its purpose is to celebrate love. Whether you call it new life, birth, or a Saviour, what are any of those things if not LOVE MADE MANIFEST? To celebrate love and new birth we gather and we give. In the process, we are teaching our children about the meaning inherent in those things we choose to celebrate.

Every year-end celebration is the finale to another whole year and the toast of promise for the upcoming one. Did you take time to think about your dreams? Did you gather a moment or two of reflection to consider how far you've come and where you wish to go from here?

In the act of giving and gathering we are given the opportunity to reflect on the past year and plan ahead for the next year. It is the act of reflection as a ritual, that too many of us have lost. And, as a result, some of the meaning of the holidays with it. For, in looking at the past year, considering the achievements we've made, the changes we've incorporated, the karma we've created, the persons we've become, that we are able to plan for the future. To grow into the person we wish to become and do the things we wish to do, we must know where we are coming from and who we are right now.

So what have you done? For yourself? For another? For the world? Have you spent the year fighting, or have you planted seeds of love in your heart, with your children? Have you smiled at strangers? Have you grown?

If you didn't get a chance to do this over the holidays, then this is the time to take and consider that which you are and those things which you will become. By doing so you give yourself (and your children) the greatest gift you could ever get. By spending time visualizing your future, your next year, you are engaging in the process of creation. Thoughts are like magnets drawing results to you and with every visualization of your future you put into action the eventual realization of that dream.

Why wait for another Christmas to volunteer in a soup kitchen, share your outgrown toys and clothes with others, buy a stranger a cup of coffee, or plan a big party. Whatever it is, why not plan it now? Before the excuses brew and the stress builds, now is the time to define what the holidays mean to you. In doing so, it's likely you could come to better understanding of what LIFE means to you.

If you don't, others will undoubtedly define it for you. So when you'd rather be in stillness, you'll find yourself dragged to every party. When you'd hoped to have an open house, you'll turn around in four weeks to realize that it never happened. Whether it's about being with friends and family or reaching out to strangers, if you take time to reflect on it, the meaning of life will become clearer. From the meaning, the spirit is built.

Holiday Spirit. Holy Spirit. In-Spirit. The Spirit of Joy for me is always brought home by the music (unabashedly played in this house from November to January):

Peace on Earth.
War is Over.
The Gift of Birth.
The Gift of Giving
Silver Bells and All Things Beautiful.
Hear the Angels Singing!!

That's what the holidays mean to me. That's what life means to me. What it means to you is for you to decide. Whichever way you celebrate love is undoubtedly glorious. It can still be a magical time. Yes, the world is crazy and bad things happen every day, but what you do for yourself, you do for another. What you do for your family, you do for the world. And of course, what you do for another, you do for the self.

When the spirit is found again it becomes easier to believe in miracles. It becomes possible to stare fear down and rise above your own self into the next most glorious and accomplished version of yourSelf that you can imagine. From that next, most grandest version of yourself, comes the next most grandest version of humanity and the world.

And, when we find that faith again, perhaps we can carry it throughout the next year, strengthening and deepening the quality of family lives all year round. Holiday Spirit is in many respects the joy of living In-Spirit. In other words, in harmony with yourself, your spirit, your dreams, your angels and your God / Goddess.

"So this is Christmas. I hope you had fun...
A very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Let's hope it's a good one. Without any fear."

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