| When you come to the edge of all the light you know, and are about to step off into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing one of two things will happen; there will be something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly. There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning. [3] May Light continue to grow in your life. Why not give light and peace – a chance – in your life? Klaas Tuinman+ MA |
The world is round
and the place which may seem like the end
may also be only the beginning. [1]
Life itself is a cycle of
endings
and beginnings
which are never clear-cut
and separate from each other . . .
there is only transition . . .
a gradual a process
which provides for time to prepare
for something to be over in one form
and re-appear in another;
but it is easily lost sight of
in the busy-ness of day-to-day life . . .
In concert music, there is the “finale”
- the final movement of a sonata or a symphony etc.
It is a transition that gradually builds up to the ending in a way
that prepares the audience for the final bars.
In literature there is a “dénouement” - the “winding down”
after the climax of a book or story.
It ties all the loose ends together;
a transition that brings it to a conclusion
and releases the tension and anxiety,
for the reader.
In “real life”, of course, many things happen,
as they happen,
when they happen,
and how they happen.
Often we are not given a way, or time
to prepare,
control,
or manage
their endings.
Yet, there are many times and occasions
where a way is provided that allows us
to shift into a gradual ending,
or a changing into something different;
a letting go
a transition . . .
in order to accept
the emergence of the new.
Christmas is an example.
There are the weeks prior to, with its hustle and bustle,
activity and preparations
yet, already during this, there is the preparation time
a transition period we know as Advent
– four weeks of leading into and up to . . .
Christmas
- and then – it’s over . . . usually . . .
or so it seems and feels.
And then, for so many people,
the day after Christmas signifies an onset of the blues.
Christmas is over,
and all the fun is done.
And even though it is a relief in a way,
something
feels
missing . . . .
Christmas day doesn’t end Christmas;
just as it didn’t end Advent
– for it was the transitional outcome of that cycle . . .
Christmas, among other things,
merely begins the Twelve Days of Christmas;
a wonderful, almost perfect way
to slowly let it go . . .
to ease out of it . . .
to go into transition once more . . .
The Twelve Days are also known as the Season of Epiphany.
They are part of natural life cycles, like tides and Moon phases:
they celebrate and extend the season of Christmas.
The day after Christmas, December 26th, continues with activity
and begins the “dénouement” – and transition.
It has two names: Boxing Day
and Saint Stephen’s Day.
Boxing Day is celebrated in Great Britain and in most areas settled by the English
(except the U.S.), including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
It is synonymous with the boxing and exchanging of gifts,
for traditionally, this was the day to open the Christmas Box
and share the contents with the poor.
This Christmas box or 'Alms Box', (a wooden or clay container)
was placed in every church on Christmas Day.
Worshippers placed gifts (alms) in it
for the poor of the parish . . .
usually money, but sometimes other gifts
given as charity (charity means “love”)
to benefit the poor;
the word "alms" is derived from an Old English word
meaning "pity (for the poor)"
Many schools still gather together gifts
to be put in Christmas Boxes
that are sent to poorer countries.
Boxing Day is also the day when families get together
- a day of watching sports and playing board games with the family,
or go on family walks in the countryside, or seashore.
St. Stephen’s Day, is named after Stephen, one of the seven original deacons
of the Christian Church who were ordained by the Apostles
to care for widows and the poor.
Later in life he was stoned to death by a mob,
and he is considered to be the second person
to die for the Christian faith,
so his day comes on the second day of Christmas.
The song, “Old King Wenceslas” is really a St. Stephen’s Day carol;
its words are:
“Old King Wenceslas looked down on the feast of Stephen”.
The Twelve Days which culminate in Epiphany
are observed in various ways in different cultures.
Basically, the twelve days of Christmas (Epiphanytide)
mark the time between when Jesus was born (Christmas)
and when he was visited by the Wise Men (Epiphany).
Epiphany is also known as the Feast of the Manifestation of Jesus).
As well as being a religious season,
Epiphany has yet another connection to our daily lives,
for “Epiphany” also means a sudden, intuitive perception of
or insight into the reality, or essential meaning of something,
often initiated by some simple,
or commonplace occurrence or experience.
These sudden moments can happen at any time.
The veil between wounded and healed is sometimes very thin,
as it is between victim and survivor.
In this way, the Twelve Days can also be the beginning of our awakening,
where we walk with renewed hope and healing in our lives . . .
our personal “epiphany”
– the transition from the old to the new.
The evening of January 5th is still counted as the Twelfth Night,
and often included feasting
along with the removal of Christmas decorations.
Epiphany (January 6th) is also called Little Christmas,
and in some countries, it is a more traditional date for giving gifts
than is Christmas day.
This is because giving gifts on this day
symbolizes the gifts brought by the Wise Men,
also called the Three Kings (Magi) Day
The entire focus is on “transition” (remaining connected through cycles),
and on “giving” rather than “getting”.
The giving doesn’t have to be money, or things.
In fact, those are ‘easy” and can lose their meaning.
The more important “giving” is giving of yourself
- which is not always as easy,
but which carries much more weight
with those who receive.
The twelve Days have been celebrated since medieval times and over the years have
combined older festivals that celebrate the changing of the year.
These were usually associated with driving away evil spirits for the start of the new year.
It involved “wassailing”, which means to revel and to celebrate noisily. It is a winter
celebration, marking the beginning of the end of the long dark winter nights and looking
towards the coming of spring, as well as to counter evil spirits.
It includes going door-to-door singing Christmas carols.
Traditionally a Yule log was kept alight for these 12 days to keep those away, and was
considered a bad omen if it went out before time.
Don’t smile too hard at the “evil spirits” notion, or consider them as quaint practices of a
simplistic superstitious people.
Nowadays some people call evil spirits “demons”, or Satan; others call them “bad vibes”.
“Wassailing” means to revel and to celebrate noisily, and is very much a part of those
winter celebrations. It marks the beginning of the end of the long dark winter nights and
looking towards the coming of spring. It includes the practice of people going door-to-door
singing Christmas carols.
Wassail is a hot, spiced punch often associated with Christmas. The word itself is a
contraction of the Middle English phrase wæs hæil, meaning "be healthy".
Connections, transitions, giving: Celebrate Life!
and the place which may seem like the end
may also be only the beginning. [1]
Life itself is a cycle of
endings
and beginnings
which are never clear-cut
and separate from each other . . .
there is only transition . . .
a gradual a process
which provides for time to prepare
for something to be over in one form
and re-appear in another;
but it is easily lost sight of
in the busy-ness of day-to-day life . . .
In concert music, there is the “finale”
- the final movement of a sonata or a symphony etc.
It is a transition that gradually builds up to the ending in a way
that prepares the audience for the final bars.
In literature there is a “dénouement” - the “winding down”
after the climax of a book or story.
It ties all the loose ends together;
a transition that brings it to a conclusion
and releases the tension and anxiety,
for the reader.
In “real life”, of course, many things happen,
as they happen,
when they happen,
and how they happen.
Often we are not given a way, or time
to prepare,
control,
or manage
their endings.
Yet, there are many times and occasions
where a way is provided that allows us
to shift into a gradual ending,
or a changing into something different;
a letting go
a transition . . .
in order to accept
the emergence of the new.
Christmas is an example.
There are the weeks prior to, with its hustle and bustle,
activity and preparations
yet, already during this, there is the preparation time
a transition period we know as Advent
– four weeks of leading into and up to . . .
Christmas
- and then – it’s over . . . usually . . .
or so it seems and feels.
And then, for so many people,
the day after Christmas signifies an onset of the blues.
Christmas is over,
and all the fun is done.
And even though it is a relief in a way,
something
feels
missing . . . .
Christmas day doesn’t end Christmas;
just as it didn’t end Advent
– for it was the transitional outcome of that cycle . . .
Christmas, among other things,
merely begins the Twelve Days of Christmas;
a wonderful, almost perfect way
to slowly let it go . . .
to ease out of it . . .
to go into transition once more . . .
The Twelve Days are also known as the Season of Epiphany.
They are part of natural life cycles, like tides and Moon phases:
they celebrate and extend the season of Christmas.
The day after Christmas, December 26th, continues with activity
and begins the “dénouement” – and transition.
It has two names: Boxing Day
and Saint Stephen’s Day.
Boxing Day is celebrated in Great Britain and in most areas settled by the English
(except the U.S.), including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
It is synonymous with the boxing and exchanging of gifts,
for traditionally, this was the day to open the Christmas Box
and share the contents with the poor.
This Christmas box or 'Alms Box', (a wooden or clay container)
was placed in every church on Christmas Day.
Worshippers placed gifts (alms) in it
for the poor of the parish . . .
usually money, but sometimes other gifts
given as charity (charity means “love”)
to benefit the poor;
the word "alms" is derived from an Old English word
meaning "pity (for the poor)"
Many schools still gather together gifts
to be put in Christmas Boxes
that are sent to poorer countries.
Boxing Day is also the day when families get together
- a day of watching sports and playing board games with the family,
or go on family walks in the countryside, or seashore.
St. Stephen’s Day, is named after Stephen, one of the seven original deacons
of the Christian Church who were ordained by the Apostles
to care for widows and the poor.
Later in life he was stoned to death by a mob,
and he is considered to be the second person
to die for the Christian faith,
so his day comes on the second day of Christmas.
The song, “Old King Wenceslas” is really a St. Stephen’s Day carol;
its words are:
“Old King Wenceslas looked down on the feast of Stephen”.
The Twelve Days which culminate in Epiphany
are observed in various ways in different cultures.
Basically, the twelve days of Christmas (Epiphanytide)
mark the time between when Jesus was born (Christmas)
and when he was visited by the Wise Men (Epiphany).
Epiphany is also known as the Feast of the Manifestation of Jesus).
As well as being a religious season,
Epiphany has yet another connection to our daily lives,
for “Epiphany” also means a sudden, intuitive perception of
or insight into the reality, or essential meaning of something,
often initiated by some simple,
or commonplace occurrence or experience.
These sudden moments can happen at any time.
The veil between wounded and healed is sometimes very thin,
as it is between victim and survivor.
In this way, the Twelve Days can also be the beginning of our awakening,
where we walk with renewed hope and healing in our lives . . .
our personal “epiphany”
– the transition from the old to the new.
The evening of January 5th is still counted as the Twelfth Night,
and often included feasting
along with the removal of Christmas decorations.
Epiphany (January 6th) is also called Little Christmas,
and in some countries, it is a more traditional date for giving gifts
than is Christmas day.
This is because giving gifts on this day
symbolizes the gifts brought by the Wise Men,
also called the Three Kings (Magi) Day
The entire focus is on “transition” (remaining connected through cycles),
and on “giving” rather than “getting”.
The giving doesn’t have to be money, or things.
In fact, those are ‘easy” and can lose their meaning.
The more important “giving” is giving of yourself
- which is not always as easy,
but which carries much more weight
with those who receive.
The twelve Days have been celebrated since medieval times and over the years have
combined older festivals that celebrate the changing of the year.
These were usually associated with driving away evil spirits for the start of the new year.
It involved “wassailing”, which means to revel and to celebrate noisily. It is a winter
celebration, marking the beginning of the end of the long dark winter nights and looking
towards the coming of spring, as well as to counter evil spirits.
It includes going door-to-door singing Christmas carols.
Traditionally a Yule log was kept alight for these 12 days to keep those away, and was
considered a bad omen if it went out before time.
Don’t smile too hard at the “evil spirits” notion, or consider them as quaint practices of a
simplistic superstitious people.
Nowadays some people call evil spirits “demons”, or Satan; others call them “bad vibes”.
“Wassailing” means to revel and to celebrate noisily, and is very much a part of those
winter celebrations. It marks the beginning of the end of the long dark winter nights and
looking towards the coming of spring. It includes the practice of people going door-to-door
singing Christmas carols.
Wassail is a hot, spiced punch often associated with Christmas. The word itself is a
contraction of the Middle English phrase wæs hæil, meaning "be healthy".
Connections, transitions, giving: Celebrate Life!
Change is a certainty on the human journey.
Endings and beginnings seem to meld
together and each becomes blurred into the other.
Instead of seeing the sadness of an ending or the
joy and elation of a new beginning
I see a continuum of events where each is
responsible for the next and all build upon the
other. [2]
Endings and beginnings seem to meld
together and each becomes blurred into the other.
Instead of seeing the sadness of an ending or the
joy and elation of a new beginning
I see a continuum of events where each is
responsible for the next and all build upon the
other. [2]
Credits:
[1] ~Ivy Baker Priest
[2] ~Michael Bridge
[3] ~Louis L'Amour
Music: Joy To The World
- a Dawn Cove Abbey contribution
[1] ~Ivy Baker Priest
[2] ~Michael Bridge
[3] ~Louis L'Amour
Music: Joy To The World
- a Dawn Cove Abbey contribution
To submit comments, requests or materials,
contact me at outreach@dawncoveabbey.org
contact me at outreach@dawncoveabbey.org
For empowerment workshops, seminars and lectures, see: http://www.dawncoveabbey.org/healing-circle
_______________________________________________________
MorningStar Inspiration from Dawn Cove Abbey
Article, haiku, humour and poem contributions are welcomed, and gratefully received
Layout & Design by DawnStar
_______________________________________________________
MorningStar Inspiration from Dawn Cove Abbey
Article, haiku, humour and poem contributions are welcomed, and gratefully received
Layout & Design by DawnStar
_______________________________________________________
 |  |  |  |  |
Visit the new Stella Maris Community - for
prayer requests and more HERE
prayer requests and more HERE
| ~Explorations In Awareness~ -Demystifying & Detoxifying the Mind- Please visit and add your voice. |