’Twas the week before Christmas and all though house
All the creatures were stirring, every dog, cat, and mouse
But especially mamma, and the kids, and me
We thought of the season, the presents, the tree
The relatives we would visit, the pies we’d bake
The games we would play, the memories we’d make
Our expectations were high and reached a fever pitch
Our hopes became a fictional scratch we couldn’t itch
We had planned to take it slow and with a touch of care
But our approach was anything but laissez-faire
There were lights to hang, and stockings to hook
We didn’t have time to read a nightly book
Menus had to be thought of and ingredients bought
More than once, over nothing at all, we fought
We raised our voices, “you’re not doing it right”
And we stole moments of despair far from anyone’s sight
You see, it was Nostalgia that guided our charts
A fool’s errand to recreate joys deep in our hearts
Against that backdrop no holiday stands a chance
For, reliving the past is no way to advance
Perfection, too, was our twinkling north star
But progress not perfection is the stuff that takes you far
Yet the past and the future, in our minds, held their grip
Until it hit me: no one on earth is guaranteed another trip
Now is all we have, all that’s certain, all there is
Now must be cherished, but first, here’s a little quiz
For each life, how many Christmases, when all’s said & done?
A hundred? Eighty-two? Sixty-five? Fifty-one?
A trick question, of course, but not in the way you think
The answer is not unknowable, it is found within a blink
“For each life,” there’s ONE Christmas, this one, right now
This Christmas is all there is until the moment takes a bow
This day, this smile, this kind action taken
To this moment’s eternal nature let your heart awaken
Happiness is never found in the past or the future
Knit yourself to this moment, this stitch, this suture
Einstein called time a “stubbornly persistent illusion”
A right jolly old elf, he intuited the solution
Turn the spotlight of your mind inward and take a breath
Remove yourself from time, begin your ego’s slow death
On this earth, we love stories, the more dramatic the better
But if the star is your ego, that’s an ugly Christmas sweater
Who you “are,” where you’re “going” or where you have been
That’s where ego shines and where anxiety creeps in
Remove yourself from both fictions, time and ego alike
Take a breath, or a walk, or a ride on a bike
As you do and as your thoughts become inevitably loud
Take another breath and just listen to them unbowed
Allow your thoughts to just be, a snow flurry in the wind
Let them swirl unperturbed, crystal water that never sinned
See your thoughts as they are, but the weather in your mind
And no weather ever stopped a human being from being kind
You need not pay close attention to each snowflake passing by
You need not catch each thought on your tongue to taste its lie
But when you do find yourself caught in a thought flurry
Focus on your breath, stay calm, and do not worry
Let each thought-flake melt on your mind’s inner skin
Let the fire in your heart burn bright from within
For you are made of stars, you are the universe itself
And the Christmas spirit doesn’t come from a sainted, bearded elf
It doesn’t come from a church, or a religion, or a store
It doesn’t come from a perfect future or ideal days of yore
It comes from right now, from this moment in time
From a focused meditation, from a silly little rhyme
The holiday season need not be fraught with stress
If you stay in the moment, you stay sublime within the mess
That’s how you spread good cheer and affection
That’s how you live under God’s great protection
Be here - do for others - know your thoughts are not you
Breathe - know you’re doing the best that you can do
Let yourself off the hook and sit in peace by the fire
And always remember: your anxiety is a liar
The holiday stress that comes part and parcel with the season
Is a gift, an opportunity, a chance, another reason
To practice meditation, to re-focus your whole life
Upon this eternal moment, here and now, free of strife
And from mamma and me, and the kids, the cat and dog
We send you this message, with the blaze of the yule log
You are loved beyond measure and surrounded by light
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO YOU, AND TO YOU A GOOD-NIGHT!
