Twas the night before Christmas and all through the street
The neighbours were stirring and cursing the heat.
The stockings were hung by the air con with care
In hope that my father would leave them all there.
I struggled to nestle all snug in my bed
Because lists of jobs still danced in my head.
Why is life getting faster each year?
Why are we rushing and what do we fear?
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash
And wished I had eaten less cauliflower mash.
The moon on the leaves of a glistening tree
Gave the lustre of midday to all I could see.
When what to my wondering eyes should appear
But a duck and its ducklings waddling up from the pier.
We live near a lake and they must have come out
To see what this Christmas was all about.
They looked so composed and free of fear
Their feathers were smooth, their eyes were clear.
And in that moment I wondered why
My days were always whizzing by.
What if we paused and listened to our hearts?
We’d know we were more than the sum of our parts.
Our natural state is wholeness and health
It’s being ourselves that brings true wealth.
But we live in a world that feeds us fear
We’re never good enough, is all we hear.
When do you feel best about you?
That is what you most need to do.
Yet we fear this is selfish so we hesitate
We put off being happy to a later date.
When you feel happy you have more to give
And giving is what makes us want to live.
So while New Year fireworks crackle and boom,
I’ll be wishing you all that makes you bloom.