When is a Question

Putting up the tree.

When is one of the basic questions in life. 

It arose for me this week when Om was showing off his new Christmas tree.  He may be Buddhist; he may be Thai; he may not understand but like so many from outside a Christian culture or upbringing, he is drawn by Christmas and its trimmings.  Maybe it is just the trimmings but I suspect it is much more.  Many people, no matter their background, love or have a fascination with Christmas. 

Om was so excited with his new acquisition that all he wanted to do was put up his new tree.  I did not want to dampen spirits or be an autocrat but I am somewhat a purist when it comes to Christmas and so I put forward the opinion that it was too early.  In the spirit of democracy, I decided to raise the question of when within a simple poll on my Facebook page. 

The responses rolled in: 
1st December;
after Thanksgiving;
Christmas Eve; 
16th December; 
whenever you like. 
Quite a diverse response from a limited field.  Responses came from people I know who originate from different parts of the world.  Christmas is a religious feast, becoming more and more a commercial opportunity, but it is also a cultural and family celebration. 

What does my simple poll tell me?  There are guiding principles at play.  Christmas is Christmas and the way we celebrate is valued by us all but there is no one defining response on how that is to be held by all.  I apply this to life and more important issues we face.

It is important we have values but no one set of values can be universally applied to all life situations and all peoples at all times on how we live out central life values.  We respect and uphold them, living them within the context within which we live. 

What I also learn is that asking one basic life question has led to other basic life questions - how? what? who?  Life is not black and white but rather grey.  It is not in having the answer but in asking the question that we find our way in life.