This holiday time is the time of blessings. Songs, stories, lights, and celebrations abound, all saturated with blessings. Happy Solstice! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukah! Gift-giving. Year-end contributions. Cookies for friends and family. The heart turns toward others with warmth and caring during these days.
It’s also a really hard time for many people. It can be deeply lonely. Grief and loss become more apparent and weighty. The sparkling lights and choruses of good cheer can be nonstop reminders of what’s missing. The treasured times of old are distant memories. And for some like my client this morning, the old holiday times were always painful. Sometimes, the light doesn’t shine into the darkness.
Amidst all this levity and gravity, there is one crucial blessing that easily gets lost. It’s the powerful blessing of self. There is a light in you that grows with self-blessing.
This blessing is the embracing of the fact that we are made from love and for love. It’s the most fundamental truth of our lives.
As you hold this blessing, it brings light to your heart and mind. As this light expands within you, it radiates out and touches others. It sends the message to others through words and deeds that they too are lovable, they too are made from love and for love.
And as Marianne Williamson reminds us,
As we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
Thank you for being a light in the world. Have a blessed holiday season!