AN OLD FASHION CHRISTMAS

Christmas, the birth of the Christ Child.

As a child growing up in a Polish neighborhood in the coal mining area of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., I remember all of the love and preparation for the wonderful day of Christmas.

There was little money to rush to the mall to purchase presents. Actually, we did not think of that. Christmas and Advent were special. We prepared for the birth of the Christ Child. The good Sisters who taught us at Marymount, helped us to make simple gifts to share with family. We made Christmas ornaments to decorate the tree.

This particular Christmas, there was no money for a tree. Actually, Dad had $1.00. We joked that maybe someone would sell us a tree for a dollar. Mom simply said that we would have a Christmas tree.

Both Mom and Dad had such a total simple FAITH THAT GOD WOULD PROVIDE.........AND HE ALWAYS DID.

The tree was secondary to the NATIVITY SCENE. Most of the people in the neighborhood spent time building an elaborate NATIVITY SCENE in their homes in preparation for Christmas. Many of these scenes took up a good portion of ones living room.

The week after Christmas was spent visiting one an others homes to view the various NATIVITY SCENES and THE CHRIST CHILD LAYING IN THE MANGER. Everyone would have a beautiful Christmas tree.

Dad could build anything. He would turn scraps of wood into something useful. Mom showed us how to create so much from very little. We created a beautiful NATIVITY SCENE.

We fasted, we went to Church. We visited hospitals and old folks homes. We sang Christmas carols. There was little commercialism. The TRUE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS was everywhere. We were happy and joyful. The fact that there was no money that year was not a concern. GOD WOULD PROVIDE.......all that we needed.

We waited until Christmas Eve morning to look for a tree in the hopes that they were on sale and one could be found for $1.00. We knew that we would find something. I simply did not expect what transpired.

Every decent looking tree was gone. Dad was determined to bring something home and not disappoint Mom. I watched him turning a few trees around. They all had a partial good side. I thought that Dad would purchase one and put the bad side against the wall. I was amazed at what he did. He negotiated to purchase two trees with bad sides for less than $1.00. Before he showed the trees to Mom, he took them to his workshop and cut the bad sides off. He then wired the two trees together and made one beautiful tree.

We had a beautiful tree to put along side our Nativity scene, just in time for Christmas Eve Supper.

This festive meal is a very important meal in Polish tradition. It contains an odd number of meatless dishes. Many dishes simply shared just on this special day. Hay is placed under the tablecloth and an extra place is always set at the table. Mom whispered to me that she hoped that Christ in disguise of a needy person would knock on our door and share this meal with us.

This meal would begin after the first star was sighted in the sky. At such time, we would share the oplatek, which is a thin wafer provided by our Church.

After this festive meal, gifts were shared and we usually went to midnight Mass. I did not expect any special Christmas gift that year because of the financial situation in our home. What a surprise when Mom and Dad brought out children's furniture that Dad made from small pieces of wood. A cupboard for some small dishes and a buffet.

That was over 50 years ago and that furniture has been passed down to many children to enjoy.

After Midnight Mass, we would socialize with friends and neighbors and then head home for another snack of those wonderful foods that we could not touch until Christmas Day.

This was such a wonderful Spiritual time. A time for reflection, a time for prayer, a time to rejoice the BIRTH OF CHRIST.

I would like to wish everyone a very MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A JOYOUS, HEALTHY NEW YEAR.

"TIS BETTER TO GIVE THAN RECEIVE"

Eileen was diligently saving money to purchase a blue fox fur coat that she had her eye on. Every so often, she would visit the furrier who carried this coat and try it on.

She had saved $1,600.00 so far toward the cost of this beautiful coat. Soon she would have enough money to purchase this coat, perhaps in time for Christmas.

One evening, her sister, Barbara, called from her home in another state. They talked on the phone every week but had not seen one another in several months. Barbara was divorced and worked at a job that provided the bare necessities but there was rarely enough money for extras.

She always seemed to turn lemons into lemonade. She was a happy person.

During this particular conversation, she was not her usual upbeat self. Eileen sensed that there was a problem and asked what was going on.

Barbara said that due to circumstances that she could not control, she had fallen behind on her mortgage payments and had just received notice from the bank that they were going to take action against her unless she came up with $1,800.00 within a short period of time.

She had no way to raise that amount of money and was resigned to losing her home. She was going apartment hunting that afternoon.

She DID NOT ASK EILEEN FOR A LOAN.

Eileen, without hesitation, told Barbara that she would send her a check for $1,800.00 to bring her mortgage current. Barbara said that she would try to repay her as funds became available.

Eileen simply said that this money was for future birthdays, Christmas etc. and was a gift.

BYE, BYE fur coat. Eileen knew that if she had purchased that coat at a time when her sister was in jeopardy of losing her home, that she would not enjoy wearing the coat.

EILEEN STILL NEEDED A COAT......

She went shopping and saw a Jordache fake fur coat that caught her eye. It was originally $250.00 reduced to $75.00. She continued to try on coats but her eyes kept going back to that Jordache fake.

She purchased that coat. It turned out to be a coat that she called HER HAPPY COAT.

Whenever Eileen wore this coat, someone would come up to her and admire it. This did not happen, once or twice, but EVERY TIME THAT SHE WORE THIS COAT.

There was nothing special about this coat except the reason that she purchased it. She came to realize that this coat was special because of how she came to own it.

She came to believe that every time someone complimented the coat and how well it looked on her that this HAD TO BE A MESSAGE FROM GOD letting her know that HE WAS PLEASED with her action.

She does NOT RECEIVE compliments on her other coats.

She has gained weight and no longer can fit into this coat. She recently donated this coat to charity. She hopes that the woman who now wears this coat, receives as much pleasure as she did from wearing it.

As I contemplated writing this story, I googled, JOY OF GIVING. I came upon an article from Science Central.

"Brain imaging research is unwrapping what's behind the joy of giving."

"You give from the heart and.....it satisfies your brain," says Jordan Grafman, chief of the Cognitive Neuroscience Section of a division of the National Institutes of Health.

Studies were conducted using a technique called functional MRI. " They were not surprised that when people received money, it lit up structures deep in the brain associated with the release of the chemical dopamine, which is known to trigger feelings of pleasure and reward."

"But as they reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, donating to charities lit up the brain's reward circuits even more than receiving cash.

TIS BETTER TO GIVE THAN RECEIVE............

IT MUST BE A CATHOLIC CELEBRATION

Ron and Regina left Michigan several days ago for a new venture in their journey through life.

They are driving to their new home in a tiny fishing village north of Merida, the capital of the Yucatan. They cross the border to Mexico in Brownsville, Texas for the remaining 1400 mile journey around the Gulf Coast to the Northern Yucatan area that is their future home.

Any long trip such as this is a challenge. One needs to be prepared for the unexpected on a journey such as this. They encountered obstacles and detours. They encountered beautiful scenery and hospitable people.

They were traveling on December 8 and it seemed as if everyone was celebrating the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The roads were filled for hundreds of miles with children carrying wood statues of Mother Mary. Many carried torches or candles. Autos were following behind this vast procession of people showing their love of the Blessed Mother.

Regina stated to Ron, IT MUST BE A CATHOLIC CELEBRATION. They had not encountered a celebration such as this while back home.

George and I joined in the joyous celebration of the Immaculate Conception many years ago while we were in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It was a memorable experience. The joy and love of the people of Mexico for the Blessed Mother was so intense. The emotions filled our hearts.

Puerto Vallarta is nestled between the rugged sierras' and the ocean. We were staying on a beachfront property but ventured up into the rugged terrain on occasion. The road in the mountain area is steep and winds down the mountainside.

We were several miles away from the village and normally would take a taxi to our destination. But not this night.

As we left the resort, we looked to the mountain road on this dark night and witnessed an unbroken line of light moving slowly down the steep, winding road. It was an incredible sight. We were told that all roads to the village were filled with people carrying statues of the Blessed Mother, burning torches and lighted candles.

It would be impossible for a taxi to pass into the village from our location. It was suggested that we eat at the resort.

NO WAY!!!! We had never witnessed such a beautiful scene before and decided to join this procession of thousands of people walking down the mountainside to gather in the village and honor our Blessed Mother.

We forgot about dinner and fed off the energy and love of the beautiful human beings that we interacted with on this lovely night.

All loved our Blessed Mother very much and that love totally filled the atmosphere.

What a beautiful night to remember. December 8, 1985.

GOD'S COVENANT WITH HIS PEOPLE

During my wanderings, I enjoy looking at old architecture. My son shares this passion and we visit many different Church's together when he is in town. I seem to see something new and interesting where ever we go.

One beautiful evening, I had attended Mass. Mass ended on a beautiful scene. I hope that others witnessed what I saw. So often we overlook beauty in nature and our surroundings. We often do not see what is in front of our nose. I seem to see everything and am constantly in awe.

GOD IS THE ULTIMATE ARTIST and shares HIS art work with us for our enjoyment and as a message of HIS INFINITE LOVE.

Father Adamkiewicz had finished Mass and was slightly to the left of the processional cross. He was facing the congregation. The sun was shining through the stain glass window. It projected in such a way, that a rainbow was forming from the middle of the Cross and ended directly behind Father Adamkiewicz. The color's blended into a vibrant pink and sky blue. Sky blue turned into the dominant color.

This scene reminded me of a rainbow ending at a pot of gold. Except, as in this case, the pot of gold was Father Adamkiewicz.

As he moved from the altar, the colors started to fade and when he turned to face the altar, the rainbow disappeared. This scene left such an impression on me that I wanted to remember it and someday do an abstract oil painting of it.

Whenever I see a rainbow, I always take time to look at it. I have always associated the rainbow with positive things but never took the time in my busy schedule to see if there was any specific meaning to the rainbow.

Something was tugging at me when I returned home and I started to research RAINBOW.

I googled RAINBOW AND COLORS.........I would like to share what I learned. I should have learned this in the past and who knows, perhaps I had been told this before and DID NOT HEAR. Too often, in our busy lifestyles, WORDS ARE SPOKEN TO US BUT WE DO NOT HEAR.

"The colour blue is frequently associated with the TABERNACLE. Blue is also associated with the COMMANDMENTS OF GOD, the importance of remembering them and also the heavenly calling of those who had been chosen by GOD to be HIS people."

"Blue is also connected with that which is HOLY IN GOD'S SERVICE".

The colour blue was so intense in the arc from the cross to the priest. Was GOD trying to tell us something?

There was so much to read about the colours of the rainbow and then the article led into GOD'S COVENANT WITH NOAH.

I am the product of Catholic schools. I attended Church, almost everyday while in school. I graduated from a secular university but still made a daily visit to Church until I married and children arrived.

For some reason, back in those days, we were not encouraged to read the Bible. What we learned from the Bible was interpreted by our Priests and Nuns. So, I listened but did not always hear.

Now, I am catching up and reading the Bible.

GOD'S COVENANT (Genesis 9:8-15)

COVENANT'S PROMISE (v.11)

"I ESTABLISH MY COVENANT WITH YOU: Never again will all life be cut off by the WATERS OF THE FLOOD; never again will there be a flood to DESTROY THE EARTH".

COVENANT'S PROMISE (vv.12-15)

12,13. And GOD said, "This is a SIGN OF THE COVENANT, I AM MAKING BETWEEN ME AND YOU and every living creature with you, a COVENANT for all generations to come: I have set my RAINBOW IN THE CLOUDS, and it well be a SIGN OF THE COVENANT BETWEEN ME AND THE EARTH.

14,15 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the RAINBOW appears in the clouds, I will REMEMBER MY COVENANT between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life."

"One lady stated that her first connection between the GOD OF SCRIPTURE AND THE GOD OF HER OWN LITTLE WORLD as a child came after being read this account of Noah and the flood in a Bible-story and being shown the rainbow after a particularly heavy rainstorm. Such an association is EXACTLY WHAT GOD INTENDED. The beauty of the brilliant spectrum of light in the sky is to remind people of any age, in every age, that they have a connection to GOD. It is up to individuals to determine if they will be faithful or faithless in their responses to the GOD WHO MAKES COVENANTS WITH US."

SEE THE RAINBOW, REMEMBER GOD'S PROMISE.........

Because of the beautiful scene between Father Adamkiewicz and the Cross, my life has been enriched with the story of the rainbow and a REMINDER OF GOD'S LOVE AND PROMISE TO US.