Laughter and Love

The grandson is begging for eggnog,
The granddaughter for cookie baking.
Bourbon balls were already in their cans
To keep the children from them partaking.

Son smoking baby backs on his big green egg
His wife acting as teacher, chauffeur, hostess,
I help my son get the kitchen ready for fun;
She welcomes all comers with a smile and a kiss.

Grandson and son fought homework battles,
While granddaughter and I together baked
Peanut butter and jelly cookies for us,
And some extras for the neighbors to take.

After teeth are brushed, we watch the Grinch,
Before goodnight tickles and goodnight prayers.
Son and daughter-in-law tuck us all in with
Enough laughter and love for all to share.

Happy Holy Days

All these people with their panties in a twist about whether we say "Happy Holidays' or "Merry Christmas" are really giving me a rash. In fact the very word "holiday" is a reworking of the words holy and day. "Happy Holy Days" it seems to me would be no less honoring of the Spirit that Christ left on earth for all of us than is "Merry" Christ Mass. "Merriment" doesn't exactly evoke visions of "peace on earth, good will toward men" for me. It seems that it sort of feeds the flames of eat, drink, and get drunk, in other words, forced fun.

(Old English mæsse, from Church Latin missa, ultimately from Latin mittere to send away; perhaps derived from the concluding dismissal in the Roman Mass, Ite, missa est, Go, it is the dismissal)source: Wikipedia. I believe this dismissal is, or should be, an admonition to go forth and live the light of the Holy Spirit.

Neither Muslims nor Jews dispute the greatness of Jesus. Gandhi, a Hindu, spoke about his admiration for the ways of Jesus, and his use of Jesus example in his peaceful protests. Even atheists, if asked, would probably not want to go back to a world without the gentling aspects of the truly Christian way.

Rather than complaining, let's start a subversive protest. Many movements take root because they are sneaky and subversive, like early Chritianity. Would anyone object if we went back to saying "Happy Holy Days?" And how about wishing each other a Happy Christ Mass because we are going out into the world with the joy of the light of the Holy Spirit revealed to many of us by our Christ? With both, we can acknowledge the specialness of the new life breathed into the world by the introduction of the Ways of our Christ's life, not just the ways of his cross.

Home For The Holidays

How peaceful I feel in the light of loving parents;
How wonderful it is to bask in their reflected glow.
This is the way to celebrate Christmas for me;
This seems a real holy family, not just for show.

The Christmas tree lights glow warmly,
But not as warmly as the love all around.
Baby Jesus is tucked into his crude crib;
He must be enjoying all the family sounds.

My nieces and nephew came by for supper,
Which I had the honor of providing.
My granddaughter read bedtime stories to me;
I sang to her of The Good Shepherd's love abiding.

All of these magical, messy, merry moments
Will forever be stored within my heart.
It may not bring peace on earth, goodwill toward men
But at least for me, it's a good start.

Addressing the Human in Humanity

Comments on "Simply Sacred"
From a Unitarian Universalist friend:
"
Beautiful. Beautiful. Beautiful.

In the Unitarian/Universalist tradition the “dedication” service is just as you describe (except for not being in the home.) The whole community dedicates themselves to the child.

Communion. Community. Communing. Commune."

A very faithful Jewish friend:

"This is wonderful.... and these rituals can be found in Judaism.

A baby is welcomed into the community with ceremonies. A girl may be named at home or in the synagogue with a special blessing, with a clergy member officiating (rabbi or cantor). Prayers for the child and parents are sung/said, with the hope that the child will be raised to perform loving deeds throughout his/her life. Circumcision for a boy is traditionally performed on the eighth day, and signifies the covenant that Abraham made with God. A naming ceremony for a daughter takes place anytime. At both ceremonies, the child is given a Hebrew name, frequently chosen to honor the memory of a loved one in the family. However, in Sephardic (Mediterranean) tradition, names are often given to honor a still-living relative (i.e., grandparent). These rituals are meant to be shared by the community, in the hope that, in the future, that community will gather to celebrate other occasions in the child's life - such as Bar/Bat Mitzvah and marriage. Education of the child is meant to be shared in the home and in the community. "Show me the way in which to go...."

My husband and I introduced the "Motsi" prayer (thanking God for the food we eat) to our children on a regular basis, after being in the home of friends who did the same. We enjoyed clasping hands around the table, saying or singing the blessing, and then enjoying our meal. My husband and I continue our ritual to this day, and we really surprised my daughter last night, when we did the same at her house. Acknowledging those who have prepared and provided our sustenance is a powerful connection to make for our children and grandchildren. And I, too, mourn the loss of regular family meals in many homes. Community.... communing.... at home and away. Beautiful values, all!"

I Googled "Motzi." Here is what I found:
"Blessed are You, God, our Lord, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth."

Read more: How to Give the Motzi Blessing | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2175474_give-motzi-blessing.html#ixzz1gEZR2Hvi

A retired Pentecostal minister who was long-stationed in Africa posted this in the comments:
"These things you mention are some of the reasons that in our tradition we have called "Communion" by a different label most of the time. We do refer to it from time to time as "Communion", but more often as "The Lord's Supper". For me, the Communion is about remembering the Lord's death on the cross as the price for my sins. He died that I might live. The wafer signifying the broken body - and the fruit of the vine signifying the blood that He shed on Calvary's cross.

In my growing up as a Pentecostal, we always were taught to pray before every meal and it included something like, "Thank you Lord for the food set before us and ...Lord bless this food, the hands that have provided it and those that prepared it. In Jesus name." That's thanksgiving first to God, then to the human hands that took part in the preparation thereof.

The "dedication of a child" always involved a charge to the parents that this was a moment of challenge to them that it is their responsibility to teach their child the ways of the Lord to the best of their ability. This dedication does not assure the child's salvation. That is a personal matter for the child to decide when the child comes to the age of accountability and makes his/her own decision to accept Christ or reject Him."

I believe it was Mother Theresa who said that we are God's hands on earth. I believe that we all need to understand that we as human animals need human touch and human ministry in so many ways. Each of us is given some gift(s) to give, even if others don't want to acknowledge our value. We must look for the value in each person and honor the Divine Spark in each person, lest we lose our collective souls in the competition for most-favored status.

Simply Sacred

Growing up, I was a Catholic kid. I received infant baptism into the church and my First Holy Communion after my first act of Confession. All of these rituals required a priest.

As I have grown I have often asked myself why parents can't hold a dedication ceremony in their own homes at which time they swear all present into a community of people who will lay down their own lives to raise the child in the way he or she should go. We would have to define laying down one's life, as very few of us will ever be asked to stand between a child and a bullet. But we are daily challenged not to lead our children to sin with our own examples.

In watching the lives of truly righteous people, I would respectfully suggest that it is much more difficult to live in a righteous manner than to allow oneself to be killed for what one espouses but doesn't necessarily live. It is we that should be dedicated at the dedication ceremonies, not the innocent infant. Only in this way can we stop handing our children our legacies of the sins of the fathers and mothers.

As for communion, our family meals should all be acts of gratitude for the gifts of the Creation and the lives that are dedicated to nourishing and protecting us. Some have a tradition of acknowledging "The Unseen Guest" at their tables, referring to the Spirit of Jesus. The Native Americans had rituals for honoring the food and the Spirit that provided the food. Kosher laws provide for respectful homage to the gifts of creation. Somehow, it seems to me that our giving over the full power of the Eucharist to a person performing a ritual among a group of strangers is not what makes communion holy.

We have lost the culture of family meals at which we honor The Creator, creation, and the providers of the labors of love that go into the nourishment of the vessels of our souls. Never do I feel more like I'm experiencing Holy Communion than when I am at the table of our dear friends where we always begin the meal with a blessing that ends with, "And bless the cook."

Having been a cook my whole life, I feel that he really does understand the efforts I expend to feed them my best blessing. The last time we were with them at their table, he was rather taken aback when I retorted, "and bless the people who earned the money to buy the meal."

My parents and grandparents spent untold amounts of energy providing for our meals. We would go to church and experience the sacred in that communion, but we were never taught that communion can happen in every loving home, and does in many every day.

Parental Protection

At what age should a child be free of the womb?
It seems that many are freed too soon.
As seeds must sprout in the shade of a tree
To grow roots that are strong enough to be set free,
So must children be protected by parents
Until they claim their own unique presence.
Then they can face the drought and the storm
With community that helps protect them from harm.

Our duty as parents is to nurture strong seeds,
Providing, not their wants, but their needs.
Some will grow to be oaks that won't bend;
These are the ones who surely need friends.
Others will be willows that wait with calm grace
For those that seek a restful place.
All of them need time to develop strong roots
To produce humanity's most nourishing fruits.

A Child's Smile

Faith and innocence is the greatest gift,
And when our hearts to darkness shift,
Our lives are so often set adrift.
We do not have to teach children
About the disappointments yet to come;
We can hope that they will avoid some.
Only tell them what they need to know;
In time their own experience will grow.
They don't have to reap what others sow.

I want to grow old gracefully
Watching children flit around me,
And coming to rest upon my knee.
I want to watch them sing and dance,
As their eyes twinkle with the romance,
That all things new are worth a chance.
My greatest wish is that each child
Will always have reasons to smile.
This makes earth heaven for a little while.