It’s no puzzle why most societies celebrate the coming of light this time of year. For a couple of months now we’ve done our annual slide into darkness. The days have got shorter and for many of us our moods have got blacker.
But in the annual miracle of the season, all that will change this week. Then magically we’ll add a few minutes of light to our day, and all will be transformed. Or will it?
We’ll still have folks suffering from depression — seasonal and ongoing. We’ll still have neighbours struggling to feed their families, never mind buying the requisite pile of presents we think shows love. We’ll still have the lonely and unlovable among us, the addicts, the social misfits and the forgotten seniors. We’ll still have innocent critters being abused. We’ll still have families torn asunder by violence.
What, we wonder, would it take to really shine the light into those places where, in spite of our generous hearts, real deprivation exists?
Could we invite a stranger with a dripping nose who hadn’t bathed in many days to share Christmas dinner with us? Would we light a candle for the abused child who, lacking guidance, knows only curse words and hates us without knowing us? Could we go to a squalid home and give gifts without judging the occupants?
Could we offer the lonely little boy or girl a respite from family meltdown? Could we visit our local humane shelter and adopt a needy creature? Could we visit the care home and really listen to the residents?
Would we walk on the same side of the street as the muttering man? Could we wash the feet of the woman selling herself on the street? Could we forgive our enemies? Would we say, “I’ll ride with you” and mean it?
Many of us at this time of year pay lip service to what we think the holidays mean. We rail about the people who dare to say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. We’re offended that anyone has a belief other than ours, or even worse, no belief. We equate Christ with Santa and many of our kids would be hard pressed to even know there’s a Christmas story.
However, it doesn’t need to be that way.
We can encourage our governments to make changes that benefit all of us. We can say yes to a community land trust. We can raise the welfare rates for the first time in many years. We can continue to give to the Food Bank all year round. We can insist on respect for our folks in care homes. We can donate to organizations like Arrowhead and insist the province do the same. We can make a difference.
May this be the year we truly see the light.
