...a word from Kathy

   C hristmas Day arrived, gifts were opened, a whole lot of food was eaten and now we sit in the post-Christmas clutter.  Some of us may have already taken down decorations, started diets and moved on to plans for 2021.  However, for me these days are a bit slower, a bit more relaxed, even lazy.  I'm relishing the memory of my 5-year-old grandson running through my house...the little pound, pound, pound of his feet.  I'm recalling the joy in his face at a surprise.  I laugh to myself when I recall his sweet giggles.  Those joy-filled moments speak to me, remind me of love, and invite me to love in the same way. I want to love like my grandson.  It's an all-out love, unconditional, pure, and offered to everyone.  And in his exuberance for life - he runs.  I mean everywhere, he runs. When we were on the beach last summer, I noticed that children constantly run.  And run for no reason.  The parents walk down the beach, but t...

  T is the season and I hope you are ready.  I hope I'm ready!  Gifts wrapped, menu planned, perfect gifts chosen, pies made, the freezer full!  However, i t feels weird in many ways, doesn't it?   It's a down-scaled Christmas celebration this year.  There are far less programs, less gatherings, less social contact, less of a lot of things we hold dear. One thing that hasn’t changed is that kids are still asking Santa for what they want!  And our young children want to know how much longer until we get to open presents?  Can Christmas ever arrive?  So, what do you ask for this Christmas?  Are you excited and anxious for the day to arrive and for the festivities to begin? We all look forward to December 24 and 25, but I believe the giving of Christmas is in the  beginning .   This month I've been contemplating that Christmas is today not some  awaited  day.   Christmas is se...

Cross-posted from Adventagain.blogspot.com   T he countdown is happening.  Whether we're counting down to Christmas or the Covid vaccine, I'm not too sure.  The news cycle is filled with covid updates and political updates.  Yet my mind and house are filled with Christmas packages and the UPS man!  These two worlds collide as we wonder who actually will be in our homes on Christmas morning.  I confess that I'm wondering why I'm going to all this Christmas trouble when the only celebrants at my house will be me and the hubs. I have rooms to fill but no one coming to fill them!  Are my rooms to remain empty? There is an old story about a couple of travelers who were told, 'there is NO ROOM for you'.  Mary and Joseph instead turned to a cow stall and made room.  This couple who had gone through their own nine months of shock, of an unexpected life event.  How did they make room?  How did they prepare a place? How does one prepare a pla...

 Cross posted from Adventagain.blogspot.com W ords, words, words! They never stop.  Whether it's a constant news cycle, our kids asking for Christmas gifts, or our work lives demanding more deadlines and time away from our personal lives.   But most upsetting, I've suddenly noticed that most words come from my daily life.  It's what I've done or not done.  It's what is planned for next week. It's my inner-self talking about all that needs to happen today, tomorrow or next week!  It's so loud in my world.  The focus is now, December, my problems, my excitement, my worry about sickness, Christmas gatherings. It's also a season that gives me my faith.  But the words of Christmas get so easily drowned out.  How can I hear the real message?  Am I willing to listen; for 'to hear' means I must stop and listen. One Christmas years ago...in the midst of the hustle and bustle...I received a call to come home.  My mama was dying.  I remem...