Christmas, 2011

Star light, star bright, first star I’ve seen tonight; I wish I may I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight.  Haven’t you said that when you were a child at the first sight of a star in the night sky?  They are beautiful, twinkling, shining objects in a dark sky.  An astronomer would say stars are big, exploding balls of gas; mostly hydrogen and helium.  Not very romantic, is it?  Hollywood says stars are popular people who have major roles in movies and TV and adored by their fans. There are star-shaped cookies, stars in our eyes and stars on top of the Christmas tree.  I’ve always been fascinated by stars; the twinkling-in-the-night-sky kind.  Maybe it’s their mystery. Maybe it’s their twinkle.  Maybe it is their light.

My granddaughter, Sophi, is a bright and shining star that lights our lives.  I made many trips to Baltimore this year to visit Steve and Ji and Sophi and Beefie and always feel sad when I have to come back to Denver.  I love being with them.  I marvel at the things Sophi has learned at 5 years old, and I marvel at what I have learned from Sophi.  She has taught me some Korean; both how to speak and how to write.  She has shown me things on the piano that I didn’t know.  Of course, her Sophi-isms are amazing. 

·        Her teacher was teaching about the 5 senses and Sophi explained to her Kindergarten class how the sense of touch worked.  “My mommy and daddy told me when you touch something with your fingers, the nerve cells in your fingers follow the nerves to send a message to your brain that you have touched something…and it is instantaneous.”  Those are big words for a Kindergartener.

·        When Sophi’s teacher told her that if another boy kept hitting her, she should hit him back, Sophi told her teacher she didn’t think that was good advice.  It is wrong to hit. Sophi told me she stood up for what she thought was right.

·        I called Steve on Father’s day and he was busy printing out pictures of brains.  He said Sophi wants to write a book about brains like he did and she wanted some pictures to add.  I have a feeling she just might do that.

·        One night at dinner Sophi was discussing how much she loved her tennis lessons.  Steve and Ji asked if she were going to be like Maria Sharapova and Sophi said, “No.  I’m going to be like Sophi.” 

 Sophi passed her black belt in Tae Kwan Do this year.  One of the tests to pass requires you to do 400 kicks in succession.  If you stop, you have to start over counting with ‘1.’  She loves to read and help her daddy in his lab.  In Sophi’s words, she helps her daddy train mice in his lab so that he can create things that help people get well.  She loves to snuggle and cook with her mommy—in fact cooking is one of her favorite things.   She truly is a bright and shining star.  They will be here for Christmas.  I am so excited to see them again.

There was one bright star over 2,000 years ago that led many people to see a special child lying in a manger in Bethlehem.  That is possibly the most important star that ever shined in the night sky.  The birth of this Christmas child is as relevant to us today as it was so many years ago.  He was born so He could share God’s light and life and joy and peace with all of us.  Celebrate that birth!

As the New Year approaches, reflecting on our lives is quite normal.  As you think of your life this past year, what births do you see waiting to emerge from difficulties you may have experienced?  These difficulties are often the very circumstances that God uses to shine God’s light into our lives.  Each challenge adds to the mystery that adds to the possibilities that adds to the adventure that adds to the joy!  Anything that adds to JOY should be embraced.  Celebrate all your miracles!

I think there are still other stars from those I have mentioned.  There are those people whose shining nature spills over into the world of others and brightens a day or even a life.  These stars are reminders that a very small act of thoughtfulness may actually be as enormous and radiant as the heavens above.  Everyone needs these kinds of stars.  My wish for you this year is to have many stars to lighten and light your way. 

Be JOYFUL and star-filled this HOLIDAY season and all through the coming New Year!