A Christmas Reflection

Category: Blog

Today we are celebrating Christmas, the time of year where everything is supposed to be warm & bright.  Where everyone’s happy, and somehow, we all find time to reach out to touch one another.  I’ve found over the years that this is less and less true. I’ve been dismayed to find that Christmas has become a commercial place full of brightness that burns like the fluorescent lights of a warehouse.  That the smiles on faces are plastic remnants of smiles they might have been long ago.  That the hugs and love we feel, see, give to one another never quite reach our hearts.  I find there has been loss, there are still struggles, there are continuing pains. I find many sitting alone wondering where their next meal is coming from or if they’ll survive another day, week, month.  And I wonder how we can find a place of joy amidst all the sorrow.

Where am I going with this?

Who we are online mimics our experiences offline. It mirrors the elements of our very real-life selves and the world we come from. It shapes how we act, whether we hide online, or come out and be loud. It’s a compartmentalized place that somehow has unlimited potential to let us be our best selves no matter what that best self looks to be.  It’s a place that for some can bring back the memories of old.  The happiness once felt.  It can heal.  It can bring about an abundance of joy.  It lets us try new things without fear. But we must get past the negative things that mirror our real-life that limit us. 

We must reach out to others, even though a great number of people do not reach out in real life. We must create joy even if we don’t feel it in real life, so we can share it.  Because in doing so we open our hearts.  And then, THEN the magic happens.  Then you reverse the mirror. And what you feel online begins to mirror itself in your real world.  Then you find maybe you reach out a hand to help another or a smile not only sits on your face but reaches your eyes.  Then you find maybe you CAN try something in real life or at least be willing to investigate it. Then in building a creation other people can share in, you begin to realize there are things you can build in your real world to manifest joy, even in your own heart.

Nothing is perfect in virtual, the same as it is not perfect in the real world; and NEITHER place is a cure all.  But maybe if we all try to pay attention to each other virtually we might just find a connection that moves us; or a person who makes us smile, or a group who can help us, or a club that we find comfort in.

For us Christmas has always been a time of connection.  To connect with family, see friends of old, make new friends, find new loves, and a time to even connect with ourselves. Personally, for me, it is a time to connect with my heart; that place that I used to live in so long ago. 

So, this Christmas I find myself in this reflective place.  We don’t have a tree up in our house, no garland strung merrily, not even a wreath to adorn our door.  But Mike & I have found a space of peace and comfort with each other. And we do this online as well as offline.  We have a lovely tree created by such creative people online.  We have candles flickering on our mantle.  We have friends we can say hi to when we log in.  We have people we make friends with, who join us from time to time. 

We have connection.  We have community.  We have a grid of people who believe in this enough to be part of it.  So, this is our Christmas & it is warm and full.  We celebrate this with you all, because without this, without YOU, Christmas is just a number.

Warmest wishes for joy, community & love; from our grid to your home.

Mike & Calli & all of us at Utopia Skye Grid

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