Share with Others

I am about to celebrate my 79th Christmas. Portions of our extended family will join Sue and me around our decorated tree to open presents on Christmas morning. Many of the presents will be in the form of an acknowledgement card or letter from a charity to which a donation has been made. Others will be in the form of something consumable. At this point in our journey through life Sue and I don’t really need any more tangible hard goods to occupy space in our home.

Looking back over the many Christmas celebrations I have experienced I have fond memories of special toys I received as a youngster - my first bike, my first Lionel train set, my first clarinet. I have memories of special get-togethers with relatives and friends I only saw occasionally throughout the rest of the year. I have memories of special food, especially lebkϋchen cookies made by my late mother and now by our daughter. I have special memories of Christmas Eve services at the church of my youth in Buffalo and at St. Stephen’s, and of singing Silent Night as the clock struck midnight on Christmas Eve when I would always feel tears on my cheeks.

These memories along with the opportunities to continue creating new memories are sustaining. So to be clear, the message in the picture above is not about Sue or me. But it does reflect the feeling of someone or, more likely, a significant number of “someones” who are not as fortunate as we are. People we know and many more we don’t know will not be creating new happy memories this Christmas season. Some are homeless without a place in which to celebrate. Some are in health care facilities with uncertain prognoses. Some are just at home by themselves with no family nearby.

The Christmas season is a time for giving as well as receiving. Please give someone you know who may not be able to feel any joy in their life right now a little of your time, a little of your compassion, a little of your smile, a little of your comfort. Share with others the inner peace that comes with knowing For Unto Us A Child Is Born!

Bob Linderman