From Out of Winter
Dear Constant Readers,
First, a merry Christmas to everyone. For me the semester is over and I am at home with my family for the time being, resting up for my last semester in college.
As is self-evident from the notes I've written, this last semester hasn't been terribly easy for me. In fact it has been one of the most trying periods so far in my life.
And so it goes. Life can be a difficult from time to time. When things get hard, it is difficult to believe that life will ever get better, and when you are in misery, it's easy to forget about happier times.
But they do get better. Life is beautiful, and for all the pain there is in the world, life is a path of exploration, and full of healing power. Like the world itself, storms will pass, the sun will rise, and winter will thaw to a new beginning.
And like the world has a large population, so it is in life that we aren't alone in either good times or challenging times.
To me it a small wonder that Christmas comes at the time when it does. For many, if not most people who celebrate Christmas, it comes in the darkest, coldest time of the year, the winter solstice (ironically, not the middle of winter, in the strictest sense of the meaning, but the beginning). Apparently Christ was actually born in the springtime, but traditionally it is celebrated in December, and either if it was intentional or accidental, it strikes me as completely appropriate one of the most important times for millions of people comes at a time when the world is seemingly forgotten and alone.
I see theological meaning in this, as well, with people going through the darkness of Advent before being saved by the light of Jesus' birth, but even from a non-religious point of view, I still find this parallel interesting.
Misery does not last, although sometimes we think it does, because pain leaves such a deep impression. From a personal standpoint, I've had to recognize some problems I have and seek help to heal, and for those of you who have listened to me try to sort my life out, I thank you. Thankfully, I am on the road of healing now. It won't be an easy road, but life isn't easy. Life is supposed to be challenging, but it isn't supposed to be a misery. That is the difference. There is always hope, and there is always an improvement and healing coming. If you chop down a forest to build a road, that road's ditch and openness might be providing the necessary conditions for a plant to grow that previously could not.
So anyway, those are my thoughts for now. I plan on spending the rest of break in a fairly relaxed manner, because I know I have a busy semester coming up.
Hope all is well.
Tristan
First, a merry Christmas to everyone. For me the semester is over and I am at home with my family for the time being, resting up for my last semester in college.
As is self-evident from the notes I've written, this last semester hasn't been terribly easy for me. In fact it has been one of the most trying periods so far in my life.
And so it goes. Life can be a difficult from time to time. When things get hard, it is difficult to believe that life will ever get better, and when you are in misery, it's easy to forget about happier times.
But they do get better. Life is beautiful, and for all the pain there is in the world, life is a path of exploration, and full of healing power. Like the world itself, storms will pass, the sun will rise, and winter will thaw to a new beginning.
And like the world has a large population, so it is in life that we aren't alone in either good times or challenging times.
To me it a small wonder that Christmas comes at the time when it does. For many, if not most people who celebrate Christmas, it comes in the darkest, coldest time of the year, the winter solstice (ironically, not the middle of winter, in the strictest sense of the meaning, but the beginning). Apparently Christ was actually born in the springtime, but traditionally it is celebrated in December, and either if it was intentional or accidental, it strikes me as completely appropriate one of the most important times for millions of people comes at a time when the world is seemingly forgotten and alone.
I see theological meaning in this, as well, with people going through the darkness of Advent before being saved by the light of Jesus' birth, but even from a non-religious point of view, I still find this parallel interesting.
Misery does not last, although sometimes we think it does, because pain leaves such a deep impression. From a personal standpoint, I've had to recognize some problems I have and seek help to heal, and for those of you who have listened to me try to sort my life out, I thank you. Thankfully, I am on the road of healing now. It won't be an easy road, but life isn't easy. Life is supposed to be challenging, but it isn't supposed to be a misery. That is the difference. There is always hope, and there is always an improvement and healing coming. If you chop down a forest to build a road, that road's ditch and openness might be providing the necessary conditions for a plant to grow that previously could not.
So anyway, those are my thoughts for now. I plan on spending the rest of break in a fairly relaxed manner, because I know I have a busy semester coming up.
Hope all is well.
Tristan
posted by Tristan | 7:27 PM
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