With angelic hosts proclaim, Christ is born in Bethlehem…

Last night at the Christmas party at my Mom’s house, we sang and sang and sang. Mr. Foy, Susan’s dad, stood next to me. He said that he was worried about standing to sing because his ears didn’t work like they used to so he has a hard time hearing certain frequencies, also in turn it has made it hard for him to balance as well, so he held on to me for balance a little bit and sang out of tune. He did a marvelous job! He sang his heart out. I like it when people like singing, even if it is not perfect. It tells me their heart is in the right place. There is a clip in Little Women, the movie, where they stand around the piano and sing carols. It makes Christmas, Christmas when carols are sung by a family. It doesn’t make any difference if there are good singers or bad singers. There is something to the adherence of the family that is distinguished by song. It binds and creates and loves a family into being a family. When we were standing around singing the carols, the family felt like a family, instead of this confusion of divorces and children and cousins and aunts and uncles. It was as though the ugliness of our family was cleansed by song. All of the sudden the new members of our family became just as valid as the old members. I guess it is because song is about heart and not head. Just like Mr. Foy, it doesn’t matter if you can sing it is that you sing. Same principal applies to the family. It is not if you are new or old members of the family, it is if you participate in the family that makes you a member. There are some people who are related to me and my parents and brother who do not participate in functions. They do not come to Christmas or Thanksgiving or go to graduations or weddings. They don’t even show up when there is someone special in town from out of town. They just don’t know how to be a member. Sometimes I wish I could tell them that all you have to do to be a member is show up. It is not hard nor does it require a lot of energy. I guess what it does require is a little bit of courage to face your fears. It seems strange to me to have a fear of family, but I recognize that some of my fears appear ridiculous to others. I know that if they sang a familiar tune with me, like a carol, they would bond and know that it is okay to be a participant in the family even if they are a small participant. I wish I could sing a song for them to bond them into this great evolved family of ours. Song would make it all better. It eases pain and makes the fears seem a little less intimidating. Song loves us back to a place of family. I really like our family. It is large and extends with great energy that place of security to me. Knowing that the Christmas party is at my Mom’s house and knowing that people like my Uncle Oze and my cousin Jenny wouldn’t miss it for the world, make it worth going and talking about the nothings of our lives. It places a security around me that lets me know that I am always a part of something larger. It lets me know that I have people who love and care about me even if it is from a distance. And yes, I got all of this out of standing around singing Christmas carols with and next to a man who I felt as though I had never met before, but has been here all of my life. Song makes a difference in my life. I am grateful for it today.