“A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.”
Do you remember the wonder of a kaleidoscope? As a child I remember peering into a tube with mirrors and pieces of colorful glass. The reflections made amazing patterns that changed when the tube was rotated.
As a grownup, I’m just as intrigued.
Christmas is a cluster of images, thoughts and emotions; a collection of odd bits of memory, passages of music and snippets of conversation. When these images are reflected in the mirror of memory, they form a kaleidoscope of the holidays. It’s as though we’re looking through a colorful lens at patterns and prisms that dazzle the eye and stir up long-forgotten emotions.
Each element is keenly felt, yet the combination is a heady mixture of joy and pain, fulfillment and need. Please join me as I try to capture sound, color and light in a Christmas collage.
Christmas is the cry of a baby, changing the world forever.
It’s the kiss of peppermint,
the comfort of hot cocoa,
a moveable feast.
Christmas is the peal of a bell,
a tangle of lights,
a shiver of hope,
a right jolly old elf.
It’s an awkward hello and a tearful goodbye.
It’s an empty chair, an aching heart.
Christmas is a velvet dress,
a sticky giggle,
a weary soldier,
a solitary meal.
It’s a whisper of snow,
a hint of pine,
a toothless grin,
a festive package.
It’s a hope deferred, a fragile truce.
It’s a living crèche,
a dying wish,
a watchful prayer.
Christmas is a drink from the cup of Forgiveness — even when the dregs are bitter.
It’s the bray of a donkey,
the blending of carolers,
a crackling fire.
And, steady in the East, one bright star presides over all our distress and delight.
Christmas is, forevermore, Emmanuel, God with us.
Kathy Joy’s blog supports www.booksforbondinghearts.com/shop, timely gifts for all seasons.
