With your eyes open, doors open.

— A.R. Kane

Greetings, Inspired Seekers:

The holiday season officially begins today, November 1. For the next 2 months we will revel in celebrations and all that they include. There are the familiar ones such as Thanksgiving, Yule, Hanukkah, The Winter Solstice, Kwanzaa and Christmas. And there are the days less familiar, perhaps – Bodhi Day, All Saints and All Souls Days, and Our Lady of Guadalupe. There are solemn days of remembrance such as Veterans Day and Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. Some of us celebrate a few of these days and some celebrate more. But, starting in November the revelry begins.

As adults, we celebrate these special days in ways that we have developed through the years. But, for a moment, stop. Close your eyes. Think back to your first. Your first Thanksgiving or Hanukkah or Christmas. Put yourself in that space where you first saw that turkey or opened that first present or lit that first candle. Take in the sights, tastes and aromas. Take in the innocence of it all. Pure joy! And then … we grow up.

We move from that life of innocence to that life filled with knowledge – and all of the worries, fears and stress collide. We might remember that time as the day where everything changed. Our heads exploded and our whole lives were turned upside down. Nothing was as it was. It happens to all of us – that shift from innocence to knowing. And it is not necessarily a shift that feels good. Knowledge does not always feel like power. Sometimes it feels like sadness. Sometimes, counterintuitively, it makes us vulnerable.

In that innocent world, the snowflakes dance, the fireplace gives us warmth and the cookie plate is always full. Then we come to learn that there are blizzards, that not everyone has enough wood for the fire, and that there are many with no cookies to eat. Our eyes are opened to the wider world and we realize that we live with others in a land where we must find answers to difficult questions. We have gotten smarter – for better or worse. We now struggle in our unsettledness where bright lights are not so shiny and the music is not always in harmony. Even during the holidays.

We learn, and once we engage in the quest for understanding, we can never stop. The door to a different kind of future has been opened and our learning is never finished. Thank goodness for that! Really. Because once we deeply understand that we are in relationship to ALL, everything changes. Our eyes are opened and we have the chance to welcome those perceived to be “others.” We understand more and we can celebrate more. We can build bigger tables and widen our circles.

So, how will we expand our joy to include the new? How will our relationships grow and increase? I think that may be where the real celebration parties – in the space of the heart, with long tables filled with enough cookies for everyone!

Grace, Always Yours,
Reverend Deborah

Question of the Month: How will you celebrate more of the holy days in new ways this season?

The Revered Dr. Deborah Darlington provides spiritual services to people of all faith traditions for all sacred celebrations. She can be reached at GraceMatters@TheSpaceForGrace.com or at 215 260 1611.