Christmas is for Love

Christmas is for love. It is for joy, for giving and sharing, for laughter, for reuniting with family and friends, for tinsel and brightly decorated packages. But mostly, Christmas is for love. I had not believed this until a small elf-like student with wide-eyed innocent eyes and soft rosy cheeks gave me a wondrous gift one Christmas. 

Mark was an 11 year old orphan who lived with his aunt, a bitter middle aged woman greatly annoyed with the burden of caring for her dead sister's son. She never failed to remind young Mark, if it hadn't been for her generosity, he would be a vagrant, homeless waif. Still, with all the scolding and chilliness at home, he was a sweet and gentle child.

I had not noticed Mark particularly until he began staying after class each day (at the risk of arousing his aunt's anger, I later found) to help me straighten up the room. We did this quietly and comfortably, not speaking much, but enjoying the solitude of that hour of the day. When we did talk, Mark spoke mostly of his mother. Though he was quite small when she died, he remembered a kind, gentle, loving woman, who always spent much time with him.

As Christmas drew near however, Mark failed to stay after school each day. I looked forward to his coming, and when the days passed and he continued to scamper hurriedly from the room after class, I stopped him one afternoon and asked why he no longer helped me in the room. I told him how I had missed him, and his large gray eyes lit up eagerly as he replied, "Did you really miss me?" 

I explained how he had been my best helper. "I was making you a surprise," he whispered confidentially. "It's for Christmas." With that, he became embarrassed and dashed from the room. He didn't stay after school any more after that.

Finally came the last school day before Christmas. Mark crept slowly into the room late that afternoon with his hands concealing something behind his back. "I have your present," he said timidly when I looked up. "I hope you like it." He held out his hands, and there lying in his small palms was a tiny wooden box. 

"Its beautiful, Mark. Is there something in it?" I asked opening the top to look inside. " 

"Oh you can't see what's in it," He replied, "and you can't touch it, or taste it or feel it, but mother always said it makes you feel good all the time, warm on cold nights, and safe when you're all alone." 

I gazed into the empty box. "What is it Mark," I asked gently, "that will make me feel so good?" "It's love," he whispered softly, "and mother always said it's best when you give it away." And he turned and quietly left the room.

So now I keep a small box crudely made of scraps of wood on the piano in my living room and only smile as inquiring friends raise quizzical eyebrows when I explain to them that there is love in it.

Yes, Christmas is for gaiety, mirth and song, for good and wondrous gifts. But mostly, Christmas is for love.

- Author Unknown -

The Tsunami Crocodile

Many amazing stories of survival came out of the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami.  One of them is how kindness saved a Sri Lankan man's life.

The man would go to the edge of a lagoon, connected to the ocean, every morning to feed the fish with a loaf of sliced bread.  One morning, a big crocodile appeared.  Sri Lankan crocodiles are very dangerous.  They are known to eat people.  Unfrightened, the kind man threw a few slices of bread to the crocodile. The croc snapped them up and swam away.

From that day on, the crocodile would come every morning for his breakfast of sliced bread, and swim away peacefully afterwards.

The man was feeding the fish the morning the Tsunami came.  Being close to the edge of the water, he was swept up in the strong currents and carried out to sea.  At first, he tried to hold on to a wooden chair, but the forces of the Tsunami were so strong that they tore the chair from his grasp.  Then he grabbed on to another piece of wood and that too was pulled away from him.  Close to drowning, he grabbed on to a log of wood that was floating close to him.  He managed to hold on to that and grab some air.

Coming back to his senses, he began to notice something very odd.  Whereas every other object was being dragged by the current out to sea, his log was moving in the opposite direction back to the shore.  When he was close enough to dry land, the man jumped off the log and scrambled up the bank to safety.  Only then did he notice that his "log" had a tail.  It was the crocodile.

Cynics say that the crocodile only saved the man so he could get some more bread the next morning!  But the wise know that the crocodile was only repaying many acts of kindness with his own act of compassion.

(From the book "Good? Bad?  Who Knows?" by Ajahn Brahm)

The Angel and the Ghost

One day an angel found out that a ghost was trying to destroy the world.  The ghost had pulled the world near a cliff.  In the nick of time, the angel appeared between the world and the cliff.

"Ghost, why are you so angry with this sinless world?"

"Shameless people.  I spent countless years building it for them, but they are destroying it in a twinkle."

"So what are you going to do, Ghost?"

"This world can't survive, so I think it's better to destroy it instantly than suffer for a long time."

"Why don't you try to tell people about this condition?"

"I'm tired of them.  I gave them a lot, but they were never satisfied.  They ask me to give them more and then waste the things that make up this world.  Listen, can you hear?  The world is hardly breathing.  It's dying ..."

"Please put it back in the forest and think of a way to save it."

"I don;t want to do anything for it, but if you want it you can have a competition with me."

"Okay!  I'd like to have a competition with you for it."

The rule was that they couldn't use their magical powers and they must race through a tunnel.  When they were ready to start, an animal shouted, "Ghost, may we have a talk with the angel?"

The ghost thought he should allow the angel to talk with them.  So he said, "Yes, of course."

A white animal who was holding a cloth said, "Dear Angel, I am from the North Pole, and this is my gift for you.  You can use it to keep yourself cool."

"Thank you!"

The ghost and angel started to run.  The tunnel was very long.  After they ran for an hour, the tunnel slowly became hotter.  So the angel put on the cloth that was given to her by the white animal.

A very strong fire was burning but the angel was not afraid and ran right through it.  The white cloth protected her.  The ghost was burned in the fire and the angel won the world.

After that the angel put the world back in the forest and said, "If people protect the world well, nothing will destroy it.  The state of the world depends on people."

(A Tibetan story by Baimajie in Skipping Stones)

Moral: Think about what we are doing to the world that holds us as if we were its heart.

The Tidy Garden

Let nature take its own course.  She understands her business better than we do.

A priest was in charge of the garden within a famous temple.  He had been given the job because he loved the flowers, shrubs and trees.  Next to the temple there was another smaller temple where there lived a very old religious teacher.

One day, when the priest was expecting some special guests, he took extra care in tending to the garden.  He pulled the weeds, trimmed the shrubs, combed the moss and spent a long time meticulously raking up and carefully arranging all the dry autumn leaves.

As he worked, the old master watched him with interest from across the wall that separated the temples.

When he had finished, the priest stood back to admire his work.  "Isn't it beautiful?" he called out to the old master.

"Yes," replied the old man, "But there is something missing.  Help me over the wall and I'll put it right for you."

After hesitating, the priest lifted the old fellow over and set him down.  Slowly, the master walked to the tree near the centre of the garden, grabbed it by the trunk and shook it.  Leaves showered down all over the garden.

"There," said the old man, "You can put me back now."

A Zen story

Moral: Nature is more perfect than anything man can create.  To make it more beautiful in our own eyes is to disrupt its natural beauty and to make nature ugly.

Scorpion Stings

A Hindu elder saw a scorpion floundering around in the water.  He decided to save it by stretching out his finger, but the scorpion stung him.  The man still tried to get the scorpion out of the water, but the scorpion stung him again.  

 A passer-by told him to stop saving the scorpion that kept stinging him.

The elderly man replied, "It is the nature of the scorpion to sting.  It is my nature to love.  Why should I give up my nature to lost just because it is the nature of the scorpion to sting?"

Moral: Don't give up loving.  Don't give up your own goodness even if people around you sting.

I Forgot To Live

First I was dying to finish high school and start college.

And then I was dying to finish college and start working.

And then I was dying to get married and have children.

And then I was dying for my children to grow old enough to go to school 

so I could return to work.

And then I was dying to retire.

And now, I am dying. And suddenly I realize I forgot to live.

~ Author Unknown ~

The Story of Creation

When we heal the earth, we heal ourselves, goes a popular saying.  Here's why.

When the world first began, there was no land, only the sea and the sky, and between them a kite (a hawk-like bird).

One day the kite grew tired of flying about, so she stirred up the sea until it threw its waters against the sky.  The sky, in order to restrain the sea, showered upon it many islands until it could no longer rise, but ran back and forth.

Then the sky ordered the kite to land on one of the islands to build her nest and to leave the sea and the sky in peace.

Now at this time the land breeze and the sea breeze were married and they had a child, which was a bamboo.  One day when this bamboo was floating about on the water, it struck the feet of he kite which was on the beach.  The bird, angry that anything should strike it, pecked at the bamboo and out of one section came a man, and from the other, a woman.

Then the earthquake called on all the birds and fish to see what should be done with these two and it was decided that they should marry.  Many children were born to the couple and from them came all the different races of people.

After a while, the parents grew very tired of having so many idle and useless children around.  They wished to be rid of them but they knew of no place to send them to.

Time went on and the children became so numerous that the parents enjoyed no peace.  One day, in desperation, the father seized a stick and began beating them on all sides.  This so frightened the children that they fled in different directions, seeking hidden rooms in the house - some concealed themselves in the walls, some ran outside, while others hid in the fireplace, and several fled to the sea.  

They evolved into the many different races that we see on earth today.

A Philippine folktale by Mabel Cook Cole.

The 5th World

Once upon a time, 5 worlds and 5 suns were created, one after the other.  The lst world was destroyed because its people acted wrongfully.  The sun was destroyed along with them.

The 2nd sun saw its people turn into monkeys due to lack of wisdom.

The 3rd sun had its world destroyed by fire, earthquakes, and volcanoes because the people didn't make sacrifices to the gods.

The 4th world perished in a flood that also drowned its sun.

Before creating the 5th world, our world, the gods met in the darkness to see who would have the honour of igniting the 5th sun.

One man volunteered.  The gods built a big fire on top of a pyramid and the volunteer prepared to throw himself into the flames.  He was resplendently attired.  Four times he tried to force himself into the fire but each time his fear drove him back.

Then the lowliest of all the gods, dressed only in humble reeds, threw himself into the fire.  The volunteer was so ashamed that he, too, jumped into the fire.

The new sun rose into the sky, giving light to the 5th world.

An American Indian tribe folktale.

The Messenger Bird

Once upon a time, there were two sisters - Sunbeam (who was always bright and cheerful) and Starlight (whose eyes twinkled like the stars).  They loved each other so much and were so happy together that they never knew what trouble meant until, one day, Starlight got very sick and died.

For the first time, Sunbeam's heart was full of grief.  She had no one else to play with.  So she sat down by the river and cried and cried for Starlight to come back to her.

Her father told her that Starlight had gone to the Spiritland of love and beauty and would be happy forever and ever.  Sunbeam was comforted.

Sunbeam had heard people say that birds were messengers from the Spiritland.  So she hunted through the woods until she found a little songbird that was too young to fly.  She carried it gently home, put it into a cage, watched over it and fed it tenderly day after day until its wings grew strong and it filled the woods with its music.

Then she carried it to Starlight's grave and after she had loaded it with kisses and messages of love for Starlight, she told it never to cease its sweetest song or fold its shining wings until it had flown to the Spiritland.

When she let it go, the glad bird poured forth a song more joyful than any that Sunbeam had ever heard.  Higher and higher it flew, and sweeter and sweeter grew its song, until at last both its form and its music were lost in the floating summer clouds.

Then Sunbeam told her father, with a bright smile and a light heart, that she had talked with dear Starlight.

And Sunbeam was once more a bright and happy girl.

Love restores, even at times of death.  "Love cures people, both the ones who give it and the ones who receive it."

A Letter to My Daughter

My dear girl,

The day you see I'm getting old, I ask you to please be patient, but most of all, try to understand what I'm going through. If when we talk, I repeat the same thing a thousand times, don't interrupt to say: "You said the same thing a minute ago"... Just listen, please. Try to remember the times when you were little and I would read the same story night after night until you would fall asleep.

When I don't want to take a bath, don't be mad and don't embarrass me. Remember when I had to run after you making excuses and trying to get you to take a shower when you were just a girl?

When you see how ignorant I am when it comes to new technology, give me the time to learn and don't look at me that way ... remember, honey, I patiently taught you how to do many things like eating appropriately, getting dressed, combing your hair and dealing with life's issues every day... the day you see I'm getting old, I ask you to please be patient, but most of all, try to understand what I'm going through.

If I occasionally lose track of what we're talking about, give me the time to remember, and if I can't, don't be nervous, impatient or arrogant. Just know in your heart that the most important thing for me is to be with you.

And when my old, tired legs don't let me move as quickly as before, give me your hand the same way that I offered mine to you when you first walked. When those days come, don't feel sad... just be with me, and understand me while I get to the end of my life with love. I'll cherish and thank you for the gift of time and joy we shared. 

With a big smile and the huge love I've always had for you, I just want to say, I love you ... my darling daughter.

By "Mum"

Very touching indeed.

Love or Be Loved

Abou Ben Adhem saw a brilliance in his room when he returned home.  He found an angel sitting at the table and recording something in a register.  He ventured to ask her very politely what she was so assiduously writing down.  She said that she was recording the names of those who loved God.  Abou was a kind soul who helped the poor, shared his food and shelter with the hungry and the homeless; he was ever engaged in wiping tears off the faces of the sad.  he had no particular loyalty to any God.  He loved persons following all religions, provided they were good and kind.  He cared only for the broad heart and the controlled mind.  The angel said, "No.  Your name is not here."

The next day, Abou's home was again lit with the same brilliance, in the centre of which was found the same recording angel.  She had another register now.  Abou asked her what she was recording in that register. She said, "I am writing down the names of those who are loved by God." Hesitatingly and with great temerity, Abou asked her whether his name was in that register.  The angel put her finger on the very first entry and said, "See!  Your name is the very first.  Love your fellowmen; that is the best method to earn the grace of God."

Empty Pages

Here's a lovely story to share with others.

One evening, a young woman went alone to walk barefoot by the ocean after the sun had set.  She stopped in her path and turned so she could see the footsteps she had left in the sand.  But they had already been washed away by the waves.

When she turned to continue her walk, she was startled by the presence of an old woman wrapped in a blanket who, out of nowhere, appeared, sitting by a fire, slowly paging through the leaves of a leather-covered book.

She walked up to the woman and asked, "Where did you come from?  I didn't see you here a moment ago.  And how did you start this fire so quickly?"  Her question went unanswered but were instead met with a reply in a serene voice, "Sit with me, child.  I have something to show you."

As the young woman sat down beside the fire, the mysterious stranger handed her the book.  She curiously turned the pages one by one and was amazed to discover they contained the story of her whole life from the early days of childhood to the present.  She then came to the page telling of her encounter with the old woman by the fire during her walk on the beach, but upon turning to the next page, she found it empty.  She frantically began to turn the rest of the pages in the book only to find they, too, were all empty.

In bewilderment, she looked at the old woman and pleaded with her to explain.

"Does that mean my life ends this night?"

"No, my child.  It means tonight your life begins."

At that moment the old woman took the book into her own hands and began to tear out each of the pages with words, throwing them one by one into the fire until all that was left were blank pages.  She handed the book of empty pages to the young woman.

"You see," she said.  "Just as the waves washed away your footprints in the sand, your past is forever gone, never to return.  The only moment you ever truly possess is here and now.  Each new moment is the beginning of the rest of your life and is to be lived to the fullest, for you will not have a chance to live that moment a second time. Most important of all, each new day brings an opportunity to love - one may never come to you again.  As for your future, you are free to shape it as you wish, for it has not yet been written."

Then, as mysteriously as she had appeared, the old woman stood up to walk away and disappeared into the darkness of the night.

(Excerpted from the book, "For Love or Nothing.  Lessons to Illuminate the Path to Love" 

by William Oak.

It's In Your Hands

Once there was a wise old man who could answer any question anyone asked him.  Two young men decided to trick him.  "We're going to fool that old man.  We'll catch a bird and go to the old man and say, "This that we hold in our hands today, is it alive or is it dead?"

"If he says "Dead", we'll turn it loose and let it fly, and if he says "Alive", we'll crush it."

So they caught a bird and carried it to the old man.  "This that we hold in our hands today, is it alive or is it dead?" they asked.

The old man looked at the men, smiled and replied: "It's in your hands."

(Author Unknown)

Smoke Signals

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhibited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements,

One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened, everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger.

"God, how could you do this to me?" he cried.

Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island.  It had come to rescue him.

: How did you know I was here? "Asked the weary man of his rescuers.

"We saw your smoke signal," they replied.

(Author Unknown)

Moral: It is easy to get discouraged when things are going bad.  But we shouldn't lose heart because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering.

How We Inherited the Sun

In the beginning there was only darkness and people kept bumping into each other.  The fox said that people on the other side of the world had plenty of light but were too greedy to share it.

The possum went over there to steal a little piece of the light.  He found the Sun hanging in a tree, lighting everything up.  He took a tiny piece of the Sun and hit it in the fur of his tail.  The heat burned the fur off his tail.  That is why possums have bald tails.

The buzzard tried next, in vain.  He hid a piece of Sun in the feathers of his head.  That is why buzzards are bald.

The spider tried next.  She made a clay bowl.  Then she spun a web to create a Milky Way across the sky reaching to the other side of the world.  She snatched up the whole Sun in the clay bowl and took it back home to our side of the world.

That is how we inherited the Sun.

(A Cherokee folk tale)

The Crab and His Mother

All parents are teachers, our first teachers, for better or worse.

A mother crab and her son went scurrying over the sand.  The mother chastised her child: "Stop walking sideways!  It's much more becoming to stroll straightforward."

And the young crab replied, "I will, Mother dear, just as soon as I see how.  Show me the straight way and I'll walk in it behind you."

Words are important, but there is nothing like the power of example.

The Mosquito & The Bull

A mosquito alighted on one of the horns of a bull and remained sitting there for a considerable time.  When it had rested sufficiently and was about to fly away, it said to the bull, "Do you mind if I go now?"  The bull merely raised his eyes and remarked, without interest, "It's all one to me; I didn't notice when you came, and I shan't know when you go away."

Value for self comes from within.  If we don't love ourselves, neither will others.

Contentment

We always tend to look at what others have that we don't.  How about looking at what we have that others don't?  

There was once a great religious preacher of Islam in Iran.  He was very poor.  Once he had no shoes to wear and no money to buy them.  Without shoes, while walking, his feet used to burn and pebbles bruised his feet.  He was always in discomfort.

One day he went to a mosque at Kufa for prayers and saw at the entrance a man with both his legs amputated.  When he pondered over that man's helplessness, his eyes opened.

He thanked God, "O God, how kind of you!  You have kept my two legs safe!"

(Author Unknown)

Forbidden Fruit

A poor farmer had a lot of mouldy hay.  Instead of wasting it, he tried to feed it to his cows but the cows would rather go hungry than eat the bad tasting grass.

So the farmer mixed the hay with some fresh hay and gave it to his cows.  The cows simply separated the good hay from the bad and ate the good stuff.  Still the mouldy hay remained.

Then the farmer noticed something strange.  Even though there was plenty of grass in the paddock, the cows would often be seen pushing their heads between the wires of the fence to eat the grass just outside the paddock.  So the farmer left the mouldy hay just outside of the fence, but close enough for a cow to reach with a stretch.  The mouldy hay was all eaten in a couple of days.

Forbidden hay, even when it is mouldy tastes sweet.

Or the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.

The Extra Burden

The story is told of one of the great men of the 19th century, Swami Dayananda Saraswati, a monk who was a devout follower of the Indian culture, and who established the new Hindu religious sect called Arya-Samaj.

During the initial days of his spiritual practice, he used to wear only the same loincloth on his body.  Once a man approached him and said, "Swamiji, since you have only one loincloth, I have brought you another."

The yogi replied: "Well, friend, even this one loincloth is a burden to me.  Why do you load me with an extra burden?  I thank you for your regard but I cannot accept another loincloth.  Please take it back."

Moral: If you are not contented with what you already have, you will definitely not be contented with what you would like to have.