“Dark, dark, dark, we all go into the dark” wrote the poet T.S. Eliot; and he may have been talking about death – but he may have been talking about November. I am always surprised by how much of our lives are shaped by the seasons, or even by the weather. Try as I might I just cannot be as happy during an ice cold rainstorm as I am on a sunny day. And how much worse is November?
Think about the spring – the first splash of sunshine on greening grass, the first purple crocus poking its way through the melting snow. How does that make you feel? Then the summer with its hazy lazy afternoons (no, put aside the days of 40 degree high humidity when we all feel weighed down, I am talking about 26 degrees and bright sunny, out in the hammock beneath the shade in the back yard with drink in hand and ribs on the BBQ type of day). Weather matters. Time matters. Which brings us back to November – with its darkest days and in between weather; too cold for apple picking and too warm for skiing; were it not for Christmas on the horizon, November might do us in.
You’ve heard of SAD, Seasonal Affective Disorder? I take issue with that idea, but don’t take offense, the word I take issue with is “disorder”; why? Well, I think it is only a disorder because we tend to think all of life is supposed to be sunshine and lollipops; how about a more ancient bit of wisdom, “For Everything there is a Season.” There is always going to be a November – and it is not a disorder to feel blue when life is darker. It is only natural.
Buddhism starts from an interesting premise: “All Life is Suffering” and then asks that we find a way to transcend the suffering and embrace it in order to find peace. While I see the wisdom in that, I would start in a slightly different place, “There will always be Suffering” and then suggest that what we need to do in order to live life fully is to have hope. And I would say a major premise of faith is the belief that this is not all there is – we believe in tomorrow.
Christianity has always had a sub plot that the world is unfolding according to God’s plan – which is another way of expressing that idea of hope. Unfortunately I think we do a lot to mess with God’s plans and so history is far more a reflection of our mistakes then it is of divine providence – but I do strongly agree with the idea that it is all going somewhere; for the most part God is helping the universe unfold despite our so called help – but it is unfolding.
There are moments of such joy and peace and wonder, and there are moments when it is cold, and dark, and lonely; we have all contended with both types of day. The trick is to ask yourself what you are going to do now. When the skies are dreary and gray (literally as well as figuratively) what next? Yes, for everything there is a season, and a time for every matter; but the point of saying that is to be able to recognize that this is not where we want to be – and what should follow like sunshine after rain is the belief that in every season there is still something else waiting to be born.
There are so many people who suffer from depression; there are so many situations that are just horrific, and I am not trying to downplay any of them; there is a reason that sadness creeps into almost every moment of our lives. Too often, however, we lose track of the temporariness of, well, of just about everything. This too shall pass. “California Dreaming” was released in 1965 by the Mommas and the Poppas. It was voted #89 of the top 500 songs of all time by Rolling Stone magazine – and it is perhaps the best illustration of what I am trying to say... “All the leaves are brown, and the sky is grey... I’d be safe and warm if I was in L.A...” There is the reality we find ourselves in, and there is the proverbial land of sunshine and warmth where we all long to find ourselves. Trust me when I tell you – faith can help to get us there.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 1, 2007
Giving Thanks
RELIGION TODAY
As Thanksgiving rolls around once again some of you might find yourselves asking “What do some religious exiles from England and the natives of Massachusetts (the Massachuset Tribe in case you are curious) have to do with me?” Well, in 1629 the Puritans who settled in Plymouth, to the north of Boston pretty much died trying to make it through a New England winter, and were rescued by the gentle folk who lived there already. This is the American myth of thanksgiving. It is the myth most of us, myself included, grew up with. When asked what we are celebrating, I always thought this was it.
If you want an equivalent Canadian story, in 1576 Martin Frobisher failed to find a Northwest Passage through the ice above our fair country; but took the time to stop in Newfoundland and have a large celebration of Thanksgiving for safe passage – we could think of this as our Canadian Pilgrim story.
So as we settled down for a night of feasting, thoughts of funny hats and native headdress always filled my mind; and I could never sort out what exactly this Holiday was all about. Nor have I ever understood why the Americans celebrate it at the wrong time; but since my Dad now lives in Indiana, I try for two big turkey feasts every year.
If, however, we take it back hundreds of years; you find that there has always been a religious service that falls on the autumnal equinox, or the full moon nearest it – the “Harvest Moon”; and it has always been a celebration of the harvest. The ancient Celts celebrated Samhain, a cross between Thanksgiving and Halloween for example. From the very beginning people stopped and gave thanks for their good fortune; whether it meant safe passage across the rough seas, or a great harvest despite the lack of rain.
Whether Hallmark likes it or not, Thanksgiving is a religious celebration; and at its simplest form Thanksgiving is exactly what it claims to be, a time to give thanks. Which I think is harder for us to do then we recognize because of one thing – pride. This is also a time to recognize that there is something more to this Universe than us.
Do you remember, early in the Mini-Series “Roots”, when Kunta Kinte’s father holds baby Kunta up to the night sky and says in effect, “This is the only thing in the Universe greater than you are!” It is a great moment, and it recognizes something that I think we sometimes forget – there is something in the universe greater than me!
Too often we are tempted to take all of the credit for what happens in our life. I have worked really hard, so I deserve that promotion. I have a lot of money so people should respect me. I had a personal problem but I was strong enough to help myself out of it. I am a great gardener so I have a bumper crop of tomatoes. Although all of that might be true, we only need one random act to shake us form our lofty pride – a sickness we did nothing to cause, a tragic accident we couldn’t prevent, or a drought that killed off the tomato blossoms.
I like Thanksgiving because I like being reminded that I am not ultimately in control of everything around me (although please don’t let that get out). This is the one time of the year when we can look up at the stars in the night sky and say “Thank You” for all of the things that worked out in our lives, despite the universe’s best attempt to throw curve balls in our path.
And however you recognize your relationship to God, Thanksgiving is the time when we need to acknowledge that we have been blessed in many ways, whether you have food on the table, money in the bank, friends nearby, your health, or even the ability and freedom to complain that life is not working out how you expected – those are all gifts that more people on the planet than we care to admit have to do without. We are each given the opportunity to respond and give thanks for all the good things in our lives, recognizing that there is also pain and hardship, but for right now, we don’t have to worry about that – we just have to let go and enjoy this moment, for each and every moment is a gift. Happy Thanksgiving.
As Thanksgiving rolls around once again some of you might find yourselves asking “What do some religious exiles from England and the natives of Massachusetts (the Massachuset Tribe in case you are curious) have to do with me?” Well, in 1629 the Puritans who settled in Plymouth, to the north of Boston pretty much died trying to make it through a New England winter, and were rescued by the gentle folk who lived there already. This is the American myth of thanksgiving. It is the myth most of us, myself included, grew up with. When asked what we are celebrating, I always thought this was it.
If you want an equivalent Canadian story, in 1576 Martin Frobisher failed to find a Northwest Passage through the ice above our fair country; but took the time to stop in Newfoundland and have a large celebration of Thanksgiving for safe passage – we could think of this as our Canadian Pilgrim story.
So as we settled down for a night of feasting, thoughts of funny hats and native headdress always filled my mind; and I could never sort out what exactly this Holiday was all about. Nor have I ever understood why the Americans celebrate it at the wrong time; but since my Dad now lives in Indiana, I try for two big turkey feasts every year.
If, however, we take it back hundreds of years; you find that there has always been a religious service that falls on the autumnal equinox, or the full moon nearest it – the “Harvest Moon”; and it has always been a celebration of the harvest. The ancient Celts celebrated Samhain, a cross between Thanksgiving and Halloween for example. From the very beginning people stopped and gave thanks for their good fortune; whether it meant safe passage across the rough seas, or a great harvest despite the lack of rain.
Whether Hallmark likes it or not, Thanksgiving is a religious celebration; and at its simplest form Thanksgiving is exactly what it claims to be, a time to give thanks. Which I think is harder for us to do then we recognize because of one thing – pride. This is also a time to recognize that there is something more to this Universe than us.
Do you remember, early in the Mini-Series “Roots”, when Kunta Kinte’s father holds baby Kunta up to the night sky and says in effect, “This is the only thing in the Universe greater than you are!” It is a great moment, and it recognizes something that I think we sometimes forget – there is something in the universe greater than me!
Too often we are tempted to take all of the credit for what happens in our life. I have worked really hard, so I deserve that promotion. I have a lot of money so people should respect me. I had a personal problem but I was strong enough to help myself out of it. I am a great gardener so I have a bumper crop of tomatoes. Although all of that might be true, we only need one random act to shake us form our lofty pride – a sickness we did nothing to cause, a tragic accident we couldn’t prevent, or a drought that killed off the tomato blossoms.
I like Thanksgiving because I like being reminded that I am not ultimately in control of everything around me (although please don’t let that get out). This is the one time of the year when we can look up at the stars in the night sky and say “Thank You” for all of the things that worked out in our lives, despite the universe’s best attempt to throw curve balls in our path.
And however you recognize your relationship to God, Thanksgiving is the time when we need to acknowledge that we have been blessed in many ways, whether you have food on the table, money in the bank, friends nearby, your health, or even the ability and freedom to complain that life is not working out how you expected – those are all gifts that more people on the planet than we care to admit have to do without. We are each given the opportunity to respond and give thanks for all the good things in our lives, recognizing that there is also pain and hardship, but for right now, we don’t have to worry about that – we just have to let go and enjoy this moment, for each and every moment is a gift. Happy Thanksgiving.
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