Sunny Christmas Eve

From my journal.

12/24//10  Christmas Eve

It’s been a beautiful time of year.  Since December 1 advent scriptures have made a path to this day.  All week the  lovely Christmas music from Pandora has touched my heart.  I’ve just finished reading a 600-page story of endurance and giving-of-all from a rag-tag, 6-man basketball team in tiny Willow Creek, MT.  The story is full of ordinary, small town folk heavy-laden with problems of life, profane in language and contemporary in morals.  I needed to read this just as I needed to read  “Black and Blue”.  These are people in reality, struggling people, living their lives in familiar MT places.  Some pages I opted to pass over the graphic sex.  I came to realize that I didn't need to find replacements for coarse words,  they are adjectives.  In this case they were more varied than I’ve ever encountered, just “bleep.” 

President Uchtdorf’s recent story of a grandfather learning to see the “stars” on the ceiling [glitter in the plaster] thereby learning to “see” is further reminding.

“...we as members of the church that bears the Savior’s name need to look beyond the façade of the season and see the sublime truth and beauty of this time of year.
“I wonder how many in Bethlehem knew that right there, close to them, the Savior had been born? The Son of God, the long-awaited and promised Messiah—He was in their midst!”

I’ve wondered if I would have recognized the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ had I not been taught by my mother and my church teachers. 

I recall the wondrous times as I traveled the trails in the mountains on occasion passing into a remarkable area and wondering, “What made this spot so wondrous.  What  happened here to distinguish it when there is beauty everywhere.”  I will never know except I do know that it was a wondrous spot.   The Spirit prompts me that it is so.

I remember along the way as a teen in SS midst thoughtless irreverence of our class noticing a life-size painting of the Savior in Gethsemane and realizing the rudeness about me.  I spoke up.  In my awkward way I embarrassed myself, but I recovered from that embarrassment.  The Spirit had shown me something true. 

President Uchtdorf:
“Like the shepherds of old, we need to say in our hearts, “Let us see this thing which is come to pass.” We need to desire it in our hearts. Let us see the Holy One of Israel in the manger, in the temple, on the mount, and on the cross. Like the shepherds, let us glorify and praise God for these tidings of great joy!”

Now I am old and I find myself needing to check my heart and see where its at, desire more to see the good around me.  Yes, there is plenty of bad, but amidst the bad there is good.  I have the choice every minute of my life to see the good or to see the bad.  At times I’m overwhelmed, bombarded, claustrophobic.  It isn’t the place where I am.  Its life.  Life continues.

Personal stories of the irksome seem to cling to me, they’re more colorful, entertaining.  There have been times in my life that I’ve been better at seeing good in others.  Chris’ and David’s illnesses and deaths were further refining.  Then again, little wedges started to collect and to affect.  Polly’s recent talk quoting her David, “That’s just the way they are.” reminded me that I learned that truth from Wanda years ago.  Somehow as the pressure has risen I haven't remembered. 

Some axioms to again remember:
“That’s just the way they are.”
“Leave it alone.”
“Look for the good.”
“Don’t get lost among the details.”

Simple things. 

Watched “Tuesdays with Morrie” the other night.  That’s a good one for reminding.