Some Christmas Eve Thoughts----------
First off, a prayer from this latest book I am reading about Maha Ghosananda

"The suffering of Cambodia, (of the world), has beeen deep.
From this suffering comes Great Compassion.
Great Compassion makes a Peaceful Heart.
A Peaceful Heart makes a Peaceful Person.
A Peaceful Person makes a Peaceful Family.
A Peaceful Family makes a Peaceful Community.
A Peaceful Community makes a Peaceful Nation.
And a Peaceful Nation makes a Peaceful World.
May all Beings live in Happiness and Peace."--Maha Ghosananda

My prayer and Christmas wish for all my Beloveds and the World is that we begin to become aware of the Breath of Compassion. The rest will take care of Itself by the Power and Peace of the Child in the Manger. Gloria in Excelsis Deo.

Now to my other thoughts:
At Solstice, I always (try to) clearly intend and pray. The part that was missing was being open to Spirit's Response in Spirit's Way and Time. ("God's time is not human's time")
Last year, I prayed literally "Create in me, O God, a clean Heart and renew a right Spirit within me."Guess what? God did. And look what it took?!?!
I will not be sorry to say good-bye to 2008. And I have already received more GIFT and more YES, more JOY and more "All in MY TIME, Beloved Child of Mine", more Voice and more Boundary-Making and Keeping, more Friendship-Growing and Nurturing, more Love of Self and Love of Others...more Love.
The Christmas Child of Stars and Scars took the Hole in my Heart and Healed It, Healed Me, Filled It, Filled Me. Through no deserving of my Own, through His BOUNDLESS LOVE and GIFT, HIS Sacrifice, HIS "YES! AMEN and SO IT IS."...and what can I bring to the stable with all the gifts from His Mother and Joseph, from the shepherds, from the Magi, from the Innkeeper's wife and the Innkeeper---??
I will bring:
*my new favorite Christmas carol, Colleen's rough "Lullabye" and sing with her to the Child
*my tears
*my conversations with children and trees
*my scar
*every gentle action I have made with hands, heart, voice, eyes, and body this year
*my dancing
*my laughter
*my gratitude for EVERYTHING
*my burgeoning nonjudgment
*my clarity
*my embracing Fear as a Friend and Teacher
*my parents
*my long walks with Cedar,
*my families of origin and of choice
*my HEALED AND FILLED HEART

And my little Gift will look like a grubby, little handmade paper cut-out wrapped in wrinkled tissue paper with a rafia bow. Teilhard de Jardin once wrote something like this-"The best gift we can give to God is the gift of ourselves FULLY ALIVE." I've gone from waking up in the morning and sighing to myself that God must want me to be alive this day because I woke up in my bed when I didn't want to wake up at all to waking up EVERY DAY now and praying "Thank YOU, GOD, for this AMAZING DAY". (yes, even before coffee and somedays with more enthusiasm than others but I say it and mean it and LIVE it!"

And what's more!
It is snowing! And I am having the Christmas celebration of my life in my own cottage with my own dog and with the LOVE OF EVERYTHING IN MY LIFE! Oh MY GOODNESS!!
And there are no wrapped presents under my tree and this home and Heart are SO FULL of GIFTS that there is NO MORE ROOM in this INN! GOD HAS FILLED IT COMPLETELY AND MY WHOLE NIGHT SKY IS FULL OF Wonder, Peace, Joy, Love, Healing, and Grace (yes and that Grace, too, and all the other grandmas and grandpas and the mammos and pops and ancestors and angel-dogs)....

This must be how the Grinch felt...except my Heart Box is not a Box. It is the Night Sky. Over the Child. In the Manger. Full of His Love.

I heard two stories last night on the radio. Two stories of angels coming in human form to families in the hospital and performing their healing work, their miracle-messages. This stuff doesn't just happen in the pages of the Holy Bible. We are living it.
I also heard another Christmas message that when Jesus went back to Heaven, He only took with Him one set of souvenirs--His Scars. He not only suffered with us, FOR us, HE UNDERSTANDS. He joins us. He sympathizes. Our God KNOWS. And bears those scars in Heaven. Our God bears the scars WE GAVE HIM..."From this deep suffering comes Great Compassion. Great Compassion makes a Peaceful Heart. A Peaceful Heart makes a Peaceful Person....." "May All Beings Live in Happiness and Peace". "Glory to God in the Highest and Peace to All Beings on Earth"