Whatever you celebrate, and however you celebrate it, the most important part of the holiday season is this; it is mean’t to bring us together.
Back in WWI (1914) battle actually stopped on Christmas Day, where a truce was made by the troops in their trenches. They bravely climbed out to greet each other. History talks about them getting back in their trenches to resume fighting, but this is not the true story… these men who had made that temporary peace had to be rotated out because they couldn’t consciously resume the fighting after meeting, sharing, laughing, seeing pictures of their ‘enemies’ families, etc. It became personal afterwards. Humanity was introduced. It was no longer an ‘enemy’ with no face.
It’s much easier for us to find a common enemy to hate when we don’t personally know them. We would never kill a loved one, neighbor or friend in all good consciousness. Would we?
This past election has caused a rift between people, such a rift as I have never seen in my short moment on this planet. It’s been a giant soundbite of hate and discontent. Blame has been thrown around like an old pillow in a childish pillow fight. Is this who we really are? Are we really just savages who have been suppressing our true feelings all along? I hope not.
We could learn much from this, and our past, if we choose to or we can continue ignoring it as we have. I believe that we, inside are kind and loving by nature. We learn hate. We learn fear. We learn animosity, distain and loathing. These are not inherent traits. We know this because when you look at a baby you see nothing but love.
You don’t look at that baby and say to yourself, “When he grows up he is going to be Hitler.”
No… you look at that baby and wish it the best on it’s journey. You hope for the best.
The next time you look at your ‘enemy’, that person or persons that your quickly jump to the other sidewalk to avoid… see that baby, and most of all see yourself as a baby. Start looking back at what made you so afraid. I’m betting that if you did this, soon enough, compassion will start to flood throughout your being and 2017 will have a much different outlook than it did before you started looking at the perfection of who you are.
Peace and Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Las Posadas, Eid-al-Adha, Diwali, Winters Solstice and Saturnalia!
David Reed Watson
P.S.
You might find this an interesting read…
WWI: The 1914 Christmas Truce
