TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

Robert wishes one and all Happy Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads.
And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below.
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tinny reindeer.

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name!

"Now Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! On, Cupid! on, on Donner and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of Toys, and St Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.
A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.

His eyes-how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly!

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself!
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk.
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!"

This old geezer has mates all over the world.  Christmas Eve will arrive at different times, but will be greeted by all with the same pleasure.

May the blessings of Christmas find one and all happy and safe.

I am blessed and will be each and every day of the new year.  I am made wealthy by the folks who have been friend to me this year and every year.  Not all Christmases are equal, some have been more joyful that others.  But each Christmas makes me very aware of how much I have been given.

SMILES

A smile costs nothing but gives much. It enriches those who receive without making poorer those who give. It takes but a moment, but the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None is so rich or mighty that he cannot get along without it and none is so poor that he cannot be made rich by it. Yet a smile cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is of no value to anyone until it is given away. Some people are too tired to give you a smile. Give them one of yours, as none needs a smile so much as he who has no more to give. ~Author Unknown

WISDOM FROM NEW 'FRIEND'

"Life is too short to wake up with regrets.. So love The people who treat you right.. Pray for the Ones who don't. Believe everything happens for a Reason. If you get a second chance, grab it with both Hands. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life Would be easy, they just promised it would be Worth it. Friends are like balloons; Once you let them go, you might not get them Back. Sometimes we get so busy with our own Lives and problems that we may not even notice That we've let them fly away. Sometimes we are so Caught up in who's right and who's wrong that we Forget what's right and wrong.. Sometimes we just Don't realize what real friendship means until it Is too late. I don't want to let that happen so I'm going to tie you to my heart so I never lose You. "

There is no snap to go with. Mind, there were some when sent, but it is the words that stand alone here. Words full of meaning.

My walk down the path of life is made rich by folks met on that path. Meeting Marilyn has made me wealthy, as have others. I want never to forget that I am made up of the sum of their kindnesses.

MAKE SOMEONE HAPPY

My dears, did you or someone you know make you happy today?  Are you blessed to be more of a 'happy' person than a dour one?

Allow this old geezer to share some happy moments with.

If one is going to be touched, one has to reach out and touch as well.

This old geezer is reaching out to all met.  There is a risk in being open with folks, not all are going to respond in kind to, there will be some who will take advantage of.  Am of the opinion that it is a risk worth taking.

Being the recipient of so much kindness of late, it is rather right to try and share the wealth.  Were I as clever as some will believe me to be, it is a lesson learned too late in life.  I am a work in progress...

ALOHA

ANGEL OF DEATH WILL COME SOON ENOUGH

In Roman Catholicism, the archangel Michael is viewed as the good Angel of Death (as opposed to Samael, the evil Angel of Death), carrying the souls of the deceased to Heaven. There, he balances them in his scales (one of his symbols). He is said to give the dying souls the chance to redeem themselves before passing as well. In Mexico, a popular folk-Catholic belief regards the Angel of Death as a saint, known as Santa Muerte, but this local cultus is not acknowledged by the Church.


This old geezer went to hospital some years back to have major surgery.  Having bad bones, it was time to have hip replaced as well as part of one leg bone.  Nasty business.  I arrived at hospital day of surgery(that is how they do it, you walk in, they carry you out), was made ready and was taken to the operation theatre.

I am a Roman Catholic and had made plans to have a priest come and give Sacrament of the Sick before going under the knife.  The good father was late and the doctors were quite keen to get started.  I made them wait until I had seen me priest.  That done, I made sure that all was ready, as any operation is serious business.

I had placed a NO CODE on medical chart, in case something was to go wrong.  I did not want any heroics done to save me life.  I was ready to go.

After surgery, I was taken to a ward to watch as I was in very much pain.  The staff at hospital gave me a large dose of morphine.  Being one who does not take drugs, I re-acted badly to the large dose.  I am told that it was very clear that I was going to die.  The hospital got my mate who had my 'power of attorney' on line and told that I was too young to die, and they knew how to correct what was happening.  My mate allowed them to save my life.  I found out all of this later in hospital room when all came to tell what had happened.  I was pissed, to tell true.  I was ready to go.  Not believing in suicide, I had to continue living.

The Angel of Death did not collect me, he just smiled and reminded me that he could return at any time.  I saw him as a friend and made self promise that the time given would be put to good use.  That is when I started being more of a community activist.  I already was, just went to the max with it and made it me life's work.

You may well be asking what all of the above has to do with the here and now.  If you allow me to proceed in me wordy fashion, I will tell...

There is a lovely chap living who is coming to the end of his days.  The battle with cancer has been a long and hard fought one.  He has out-lived the time the doctors had told he had left by many months.  He has got his affairs in order.  He has done all of things possible to make his passing comfortable, not just for himself, but all round.

In all of the time I have known this lovely chap, his world has been the one viewed from the hospital bed in the living room of the flat.  He can see a bit of sky from bed, and with the front door open can hear the signs of life round him.  He has a massive telly to watch, and this past Christmas treated self to one of the fancy games to play with.  The sort that allows one to bowl and other things.  This old geezer even was got to play.  You could hear the pure joy in his voice at all of the folks having fun at his bedside.

My dears, do you have any idea how hard it is to be confined to a hospital bed month after month?  To have others do all things for you?

Were I the lovely chap, I do not think I could handle it so well.  I would pull an Oscar Wilde and quote; "Either the wallpaper goes or I do."

Sadly, some of the folks who pay a visit to the lovely man are not very nice.  They come and fill the air with tales of the woes in their lives.  I can not pay rent.  I have no cash.  I have no food.  I am being forced to move.  Woe is me.  They turn the living room of the poor chat into the Wailing Wall.  Bit hard to get round in there what with all of the folks hanging from crosses.

I told folks that it was horrid that they carry on like this.  Here is a man soon to die and he does it with grace and dignity.  How dare they burden him with the petty concerns they have.  Show a little class in visiting.

This old geezer worked as a volunteer in the beginning of the AIDS plague.  Did hospice for many.  Saw that death is not greeted by all in the same manner.  Some are angry.  Some fight and curse.  A few are afraid of what awaits them.

Then there are the folks who face death with a smile.  They would rather go on living but it is time.  They have nothing to fear and they have made sure that all is made ready for the visit from the Angel of Death.  Many is the time I sat holding hands as Death came and saw the wondrous smile on faces of  the newly departed.

I do not know what come after death.  I do know that having seen many die, it must not be a horrid place.  There are too many smiles.  Like the lovely chap down the road from me, I will greet the Angel of Death as a friend, I will not fight but go quietly to what happens next.

SALUTE TO A GOOD FRIEND

I suddenly realized that ... this man... this man...
No one every made me feel like someone
'Til him
Life was really nothing but a glum one
'Til him 
My existence bordered on the tragic
Always timid, never took a chance
Then I felt his magic
And my heart began to dance 
I was always frightened, fraught with worry...
'Til him
I was going nowhere in a hurry
'Til him
He filled up my empty life
Filled it to the brim
There could never ever be
Another one...like him 

And there is more.....

I like him, I really like him. 
Tear out my fingernails one by one, I like him! 
I don't have a very good reason, 
Since I've been with him, 
Cuckoo-nuts have been in season... 
But there's nothing I can do, 
Chop me up for onion stew, 
Still I'll yell to the sky 
Though I can't tell you why, 
That I like him! 

 I like him, I really like him. 
Pluck me naked as a scalded chicken, 
I like him! 
Don't ask me for why or wherefore, 
'Cause I don't have a single good 
"Because" or "therefore!" 
You can barbecue my nose. 
Make a giblet of my toes, 
Make me freeze, make me fry. 
Make me sigh, make me cry. 
Still I'll yell to the sky, 
Though I can't tell you why. 
That I like him

A CHRISTMAS TALE - 2013

Over the past several days I have watched multiple versions of the movie "A Christmas Carol".  There has been the 1935, the 1953 and the 1990's telling of what has to be the definitive Christmas story, penned by Charles Dickens in 1843.

You may well say that the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future have made quite a few visits.

I know that there are many who wish that the whole business of the holidays would just go away.  They would like nothing better than to wake up and find that they have missed it completely.  There are many known to who feel that the the buying of presents, for people not well liked, the putting up a tree and other decorations starts way too early and the endless din of Christmas music heard the whole day long is more that anyone should have to bear.  BAH HUMBUG.

To be true, the old geezer cannot look back at some Christmas seasons with undiluted pleasure.

My early memories of Christmas date back to the orphanage.  While there was a tree and bright lights and a few outings to mark the season, the whole experience was not entirely well received.  The nuns in charge had a knack for pulling donations out of the pockets of the well to do.  Putting small unwanted children on display was a sure way to tap into the guilt of folks.  The money poured in and presents received for 'the poor children' were locked away to be used as bribes in the future.  To say that Christmas was mean would be to put it mildly.

Then I met John and the true meaning of Christmas revealed itself to me.  How well I remember the first Christmas.  There was an enormous tree in the living room.  I had bought many strings of lights to put on and tree and was feeling in a most festive mood.   John pointed out to me that the lights bought were the sort that one placed on bushes and the such OUTSIDE of the house.  I knew that.  I wanted to make sure that when the tree had been lighted the light coming from the tree would blind you.  What a sight it was and to this day remains one of the special memories of Christmas.

There were many Christmas seasons spent with fond memory.  Christmas celebrated in many different parts of the world.  Christmas in Stockholm was special as were the ones had in Paris, Copenhagen, Amsterdam and London.  London, now there was Christmas remembered.  The whole English manner in celebrating the holiday appealed to me.

Hawaii is completely different to manner in which Christmas has been celebrated in the past.  It is hot and the sun shines all day and there is nothing remotely common with the memories of Christmas past connect to it.  There is however the spirit of ALOHA, a spirit that seems to get stronger during the Christmas season and just wraps you in warm blanket of love.  It is also the place John loved most and it is where John rests.

Christmas, for me, is a collection of past memories that fill me with hope and remind me of the love received and the many kindnesses received.  Christmas is a time I remember all of the people met during my walk through life.  People who have become a part of who I am.

Many years ago I received a little article cut from a newspaper.  It was inside a card received and has become a tradition of mine at this time of year.  I would like to keep that tradition going...

I have a list of folks I know all written in a book.
Every year at Christmas I go and take a look.
That is when I realize that these names are a part
Not of the book they are written in but of my heart
Each name stands for someone who has crossed my path sometime
And in the meeting they have become the "rhythm of the rhyme"
While it sounds fantastic for me to add this claim
I really believe I am composed of each remembered name
While you may not be aware of any special link
Just meeting you has shaped my life more than you can think
Once you have met somebody the years cannot erase
The memory of a pleasant word or friendly face
So never think of my Christmas card is just a mere routine
of names upon a list, forgotten in between
For when I send a Christmas card that is addressed to you
It is because you are on the list of folks I am indebted to
You are a part of the total of many folks I have met
You happen to be one of those I prefer not to forget
Whether I have known you for many years or few
In some way you have had a part in shaping things I do
Every Christmas I realize anew
The biggest gift that life can give is meeting folks like you.

This time of year I remember so many.  Carol, the lovely lady who sent me the clipping.  Randy and Jack.  Anita, my 'aging hippie' friend who never gave up on her community.  Paul who was my friend and is sorely missed this Christmas.  Roy who allowed the old geezer to get some pretty good deals and will always be remembered as the person who helped me have the best Halloween ever.  Laura who shared so much of herself and has a heart as big as Texas.  Paul who has been a better friend that I deserve and reminds me that caring and sharing are just a natural part of his make-up.  The Big Kahuna who helped this old geezer through a rough patch and allowed me to celebrate his Christmas Eve with his family.  Ron who tries to act so mean most of the year and overcomes his mean nature to put on a Christmas Eve gathering for many folks who would not otherwise has a Christmas.  Ron who spends much of what he has little to give presents to all who come to his gathering.  Alan who pretends to hate Christmas and has more of the true meaning of Christmas in him that any I know.  Angie who married my brother and tries to create a family for him.  James who overlooks the faults of his friend and tries to makes sure that the spirit of Christmas is there for him, even if he does not appreciate.  Rocky who tries to keep the spirit.  The flood of faces and names is endless.  I have been blessed by so many and loved.

Truth be told there are folks not named but still very much a part of my memories this day.  If not today, they have been mentioned in the past and will be very much on my mind as I celebrate Christmas this year.

A special thanks to the dear old friend who sent me the snap of me when I was 24.  It touched me so much that I made sure to place a snap of me as I am today.  Odd how I still do not smile...

Like Scrooge, I will try to keep Christmas in my heart the whole of the year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS MY DEARS AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT...

CHRISTMAS CARD LIST

Robert as Santa - Christmas 2007

I have a list of folks I know all written in a book.
Every year at Christmas I go and take a look.
That is when I realize that these names are a part
Not of the book they are written in but of my heart
Each name stands for someone who has crossed my path sometime
And in the meeting they have become the "rhythm of the rhyme"
While it sounds fantastic for me to add this claim
I really believe I am composed of each remembered name
While you may not be aware of any special link
Just meeting you has shaped my life more than you can think
Once you have met somebody the years cannot erase
The memory of a pleasant word or friendly face
So never think of my Christmas card is just a mere routine
of names upon a list, forgotten in between
For when I send a Christmas card that is addressed to you
It is because you are on the list of folks I am indebted to
You are a part of the total of many folks I have met
You happen to be one of those I prefer not to forget
Whether I have known you for many years or few
In some way you have had a part in shaping things I do
Every Christmas I realize anew
The biggest gift that life can give is meeting folks like you.

My dears, the above newspaper clipping was old when it was sent to MOI in a Christmas Card many years ago. It meant so much to MOI that it became a marker in my diary and it is seen almost daily. Some times it is just moved from page to page but at other times MOI reads it again and thinks of all of the lovely folks who have been a part of his life.

Many Christmas's have been enjoyed in the 60 odd years of life.  One of most remembered is last one spent with John, happy we were, even if we knew he would not be round for the next one.  There is a memorable one in Stockholm, and a few special ones in London.  Am very fond of the one spent in Hilo.  Then there is the one in Marysville, the one James and Chandra came into life.  Christmas makes MOI think back on the lovely times had with Paul.

This year, Ron is holding his annual Christmas Eve Party.  Ron ADORES Christmas, and loves to play Santa to all the folks known to.  May well be a Christmas to remember...

Many of you are 'au fait' with MOI sending E-Cards. Not a holiday or special event passes without a little something being sent to the folks who are special. A small number of folks write back and tell that they NEVER open the E-Cards, they are afraid that it will have a 'virus' but that does not stop MOI from sending them. Many know that it is just my way of letting all know they are thought of. MOI receives many as well and loves each and every one received.