Hope is never ending

Two outstanding participants among the young Burmese

It is Christmas and end of the year all in one.  Despite whatever may be going in my life and world, I always feel a sense of overwhelming joy and excitement at this time of the year.  For me, it is the nature of the season.  I am aware of the difficulties and challenges around me but they never drown out the surpassing joy and excitement.  Then I found this past week support for my maybe innocent or misguided stance in life from most surprising sources.

One was in visiting a gathering of young Burmese migrant workers here in Bangkok.  They were gathered for a day of celebration to mark the end of the year.  During the year, they enjoy the Caritas outreach which brings them together for opportunities in education and vocational training.  These young adults know more difficulty and challenge than most at their age but being with them all I could feel was their sense of vigor, zest for life and joyful hope.   Being with them nourished and refreshed me.  They were life giving.

The other source was much more distant but just as real.  It came to me through a powerful song sung by children suffering in war torn Syria, named "Heartbeat" and produced by UNICEF.  In the midst of death and destruction, their voice for life and hope spoke loud and clear.  In the midst of devastation, they sung with joy, affirming that "dreams we built together will all come true".

From brokenness and vulnerability comes the strongest and most gut wrenching message for hope and life in our world.  Christmas is truly a time for joy and excitement.  Let it not be killed by any force.  Just let it live on. 

Happy Christmas!

I don't understand

A Christmas scene in Bangkok

So close to Christmas and a bottom line in my Thailand remains stuck at "I don't understand".  This was the bottom line of a robust discussion in my office where one Thai staff member got angry with me over 'I am not sure exactly why'.  I ask myself - what is it that I am not getting here? 

The scene was that I was acting to help staff deal with a situation in the office.  Obviously my presentation of my defence got her angry.  I won't go into the issue but just say that as I spoke, I became aware that I did not know all the facts but only the facts made available to me.  Whatever the case, all I was doing was trying to be helpful and explain matters when I was confronted by her anger, with the bottom line given to me -  "I just do not understand you".  I could honestly reply that I do not understand either.  Why all this anger?  I was not angry. 

Then all this anger was lumped onto me and I found myself reacting inside with anger as why should I be getting this blast?  I did my best to stand back and not get angry as vented anger goes nowhere and becomes counterproductive, expecially here where no one deals with confrontation.  Yet, as I said at the time, it is good to get angry.  I believe this even though anger is never easy.

And you know?  Anger can produce positive results as it did in this case.  The outcome was that there is spoken agreement that we don't understand each other and that we need to talk more.  Maybe Christmas is the right time to have such a discussion as it leads to needed growth which never comes easily.  It involves hard work and comes at a cost.  There is no magical way.   

Yes, I might want Christmas all year round but it has to be about much more than sweet sounding melodies and everyone being happy and nice.  It does not happen by magic.  It takes hard and uncomfortable work which will be done in the hope of creating of creating greater understanding.  This speaks of a world that is more Christmassy, a world where people can somehow operate together, care for each other more and show each other a smile instead of a frown.   Christmas is not about the simplistic and unreal approach of never crying and never pouting.   So let Christmas roll on!

We never stop learning

Advent Wreath

Well, it is that time of year, the lead up to Christmas, which, for the Church, is the season of Advent, a season of waiting or more poignantly of eager expectation.  The great symbol of Advent is the Advent wreath which has four candles, one for each of the four Sundays of Advent.  So as you go through the Sundays, you light the next candle until only the Christ candle in the centre is left for Christmas Day.  Marvellous!

Then today at mass, I learn from the Monsignor that the symbolism gets even better as the four candles symbolise in turn hope, peace. joy, love.  I never knew that.  How true that you never stop learning.  For some reason, learning this simple insight just blew me away.  Why?

Maybe, it is the world we live in as we so need each of those four values to be alive and flourishing in our midst. 

Yes, I love Christmas.  It has never been just for gifts and shopping but for the spirit, the symbols, the colour, the beauty, the catchy melodies, the joy.  All this I experience at this time of the year.  It is like I can never get enough of it.  Then I ask why can't it be like this all year?  Well, for one thing, the tree and the decorations and the silly music are not there all the time to make us feel good as it all just does not fit for a year round event.  Still maybe we could make them be there all year round so that life feels good the whole year.  That is one way to go. 

There again, that is not being realistic.  It has to be more than feel good.  We have to do good and make good.  Life, like all of us, is a mixed bag but let us all remember where we want to be - on the side of hope, peace, joy and love.   We can never get enough of Christmas and we need it right now.