Mercy Mild

It's been a sad December.  A health scare for a family member.  The school shootings which are still reverberating in the darkest places of my heart.  The loss of a loved one.

December is the darkest month of the year, and this year, that is true in more than one sense.

But Christmas is a light in the darkness.  This day for me is a day for celebrating the human spirit, the kindness and goodness of mankind, the meaning of love and giving.

A day for peace on earth, and mercy mild.  Permission to grant ourselves a little mercy, for all our little and not so little failures of the year past.  Mercy to look forward with hope to next year, and the promises it holds.  A day to be thankful for the simple joys: songs sung around a lighted tree, nutmeg and eggnog, little arms that hold you tight, snowflakes on your tongue, laughter in the air. Where sorrow leaves us empty, joy fills us to the brim.

It is dark now, but spring is not so far away.  I turn inward, and count my blessings- the little joys that bring Christmas to my soul.

Photo from here