The Pageless Book

Photo Above by Danielle Blue. Photo Below by Wired Protocol.

I come from a lower middle-class family with two blue-collar working parents. When my mother had first met my step-father, he was a union steel worker, which was at the time a secure job you could count on until retirement. Someone forgot to tell the company owners that, because throughout my childhood our family suffered temporary lay-offs which lead to unpaid bills and eventual eviction notices. I don’t blame my parents; they were raised in an industrial society and were unprepared for the shift to a technological white-collar based economy.

In time, the temporary lay-offs stretched from weeks into months, until one day they closed down the plant at which my step-father worked. This event sent my parents into a panic. I remember long nights of listening to them argue about money, bills, and blaming each other for how bad things had gotten. At some point, I became tired of worrying and fearing the next crisis. Had we not survived these issues before? My parents had always seemed to pull their resources and their wits together at the last minute, finding a means for us to survive as a family. I began to see all the arguing and worrying as a waste of time and energy that could have been better spent resolving or even preventing my family’s financial problems. We would always survive; the question became how well we would survive.

In stark contrast to my parents, I had developed hope for the future. Now this wasn’t a naive hope - after all we had been through, I learned that hard times are always a pink slip away. However, times would not always be hard, and every passing moment of in-fighting was another lost opportunity to make the hard times a little less hard. Why waste that energy and time?

So, when my wife came home early from work seven months ago and told me with a stunned look on her face that she had been let go, I didn’t panic. I knew that we would make this work - no stressing needed. I was pretty confident that she would have a new job within the next couple of months. Even though I was wrong, and we have struggled through these last seven months, I knew that we would survive. There was no question in my mind that this was a temporary situation.

On Saturday, my wife visited me on my lunch break at work and told me that she had an interview with a local company. This company she was referring to has a great reputation, and she is looking forward to working for them. After such a long period of shrinking prospects and temporary positions, we may finally be looking at the opportunity for which we’ve been waiting. The hard times are almost over. Do you know what? They weren’t all that hard after all.

What does this have to do with spirituality? It shows that hope does win out in the end. These financial issues that I have witnessed in the past and am living with in the present are a microcosm of the ills in this world. Faith - that which is at the very heart of spirituality - does not need to be blind, deaf, or dumb to our present situation to be maintained. Not once when I expressed hope for the future did I ignore the truth of the present, and I am aware, even now, that this new opportunity isn’t guaranteed. However, it is the message of spirituality that, no matter how horrible things become, we have the capacity to survive, adapt, and even thrive. It is what experience has taught me and what history proves. Even in our worst hour, we have been living off the fruits of Hope.

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written by John \\ tags: Faith, Family, Life, Spirituality, Work

Photo Above by Meyshan. Photo Below by Jaqian, of sculpture titled “Aspiration” by Rowan Gillespie.
Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of meditation and prayer on the subject of my aspiration and hopes for the future. Now, I’m not the type of person to believe that prayer was meant making requests of the Divine, but rather clarity in how to approach those things you want in your life. At this time in my life, the resources I need to pursue my passions are scarce. While I know that in the future I will be free to pursue bigger and better things, right now I’m frustrated with my current situation.

I am meant to do something important with this life. Constantly, I am reminded that I am meant for something greater. Not fame or fortune, but something that actively makes this world a better place. There is a lot to love in this world that often goes unrecognized and unappreciated. It is as if I see potential where others see only profit, greatness where others see poverty, and beauty everywhere while my fellow human beings walk about with glazed over eyes.

This is what I want from life… I want open eyes, create, heal, and learn. I want to be a father to my children, a husband to my wife, and a brother to all people. I want to be artistic in the way I live my life. I want to start a revolution in humanity’s perception of itself. I want to pry into God’s eye and see deeper into the truth than ever has been seen before. I want love for myself, for those around me, and for those in pain. I want to be the person who makes all difference in the world.

Egotistical? You bet it is. It is the main occupation of my ego to wish bigger and better things for myself. I’m not content to remain a cog in the machine; I’m tired of going around in circles. While I am still young, I can’t help but feel that time is slipping away from me. It just doesn’t feel like I’m moving forward.

I know, I know - enough of this incessant angst! I have a lot to be thankful for, not the least of which is my loving wife, family, and friends. I’m also thankful to have a place where I can speak my mind on spiritual and religious topics - a place to think and be heard. Perhaps I should spend sometime focusing on the positive and remembering that I am blessed. I still have sixty-some-odd years of life ahead of me; my adult life accounts only for eight of my soon-to-be twenty nine years.

…It’s too early for a mid-life crisis.

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written by John \\ tags: Aspirations, Family, Humanity, Life, Meditation, Prayer

Photo Above by ButterflySha. Photo Below by Steve Evans.

“If the only prayer you ever say in your whole life is ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.”
- Meister Eckhart, 1260– 1328.

I don’t remember the exact time it first happened, but I do remember it was during a gathering with my in-laws. My wife was seated on my right, and her grandmother was on my left side. On one end of the table was my father-in-law, and on the other end was my mother-in-law. Across from us was my brother-in-law, his wife, and between them sat Samantha, my niece and god-child. Food, glorious sustenance, was set out before us. Before anyone could lay one hand on a roll, Samantha said, for the first time of what would become a tradition at such gatherings, “We need to say the words!” My wife and I looked at each other in mild displeasure.

Why displeasure, you may ask? What exactly was it that I have against saying grace? It is because I felt excluded. Many non-Christians feel singled out when called upon to pray in public. Think of the position we are placed in: we can either pretend to pray with everyone else, betraying our own beliefs while insulting the integrity of the beliefs of others, or we can stand there in awkward silence, feeling out of place and perhaps a little bit ostracized. That may not be the intention of the practice of public prayer, but it is often the effect.

Non-Christians often develop a negative attitude in regards to prayer in general, due to our Christian brethren’s insistence on public prayer. In all honesty, this negativity may be part of what fuels the debate on school prayer. It is this reluctance to pray that concerns me - not only my own resistance to prayer, but the lack of prayer among non-Christians in general. The problem is that prayer is so much apart of the Christian experience, than when a person leaves the Christian religion, they feel they must leave behind this deeply spiritual practice as well.

The truth is, prayer has always been a meaningful method of communing with the Divine and has existed since the dawn of civilization. No one group of people can lay claim to this practice as being exclusively their own. As people of alternative spiritual paths, we need to recognize that it is everyone’s inherited right to communicate with the Divine through prayer. We need to reclaim prayer as our own and find a meaningful way in which people of all faiths can pray together.

So how will I reintegrate prayer into my spiritual practices without alienating my Christian in-laws? By requesting a silent prayer when in public, and praying in earnest when alone. Ironically enough, that is exactly how Jesus recommended that his followers pray. In Matthew 6:5, Jesus instructs his followers saying, “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men.”

This passage in the Bible leads me to believe that perhaps even the early Christians felt excluded because of the practice of public prayer in ancient Rome. It does no one harm to gently remind them of that possibility. Next time I am at a gathering with family, perhaps I will do just that.

Originally posted September 29th, 2007.

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written by John \\ tags: Christian, Faith, Family, Prayer, Religion, Ritual, Tradition

Above Photo by Manuel Canevet. Below Photo by Brendan Dolan-Gavitt.

“Intolerance betrays want of faith in one’s cause”
Mahatma Gandhi, 1869 - 1948.

I’ve never been a man who enjoys conflict. In all my life, from childhood to my present age, I may have been involved in half a dozen physical altercations, most of which were with my younger brother. I’m the type of guy who would rather walk away from a fight with my damaged pride than stand my ground and turn an intellectual pissing contest into an exchange of blows. There are, however, some things that I will always stand up against: bigotry in all forms, especially religious intolerance.

One of the main purposes behind this blog is to serve as a vehicle with which to fight religious intolerance. Too long have I watched the narrow minded old men of mainstream religion spout their vitriol over television, radio, and in print. Too long have they spoken against common sense, using their titles of Reverend, Pastor, and Father as justification for their bigotry. At one time, the scriptures of the Bible were used to rationalize segregation and sexism; the same text is now used to vindicate homophobia and war. These men of hatred hide behind the pretense of religious freedom and tolerance, like Trojans within their horse, seeking to dismantle the institutions of religious freedom and tolerance from the inside out.

I have to ask myself, how can I alone could stand up against these men? I’m not an authority. Though I am working towards becoming a Minister, I don’t even have a B.A. degree in religion. I am nearly powerless. I might as well be a homeless man on the street corner with a sign reading “The End is Nigh” for what all my credibility and influence is worth. The only thing I have is my faith in humanity. Is that enough? It will have to be.

Yet, I cannot allow myself the luxury of advocating to only those who agree with me. Sitting around listening to others agree with me would be nice, but I wouldn’t be accomplishing much. I have every intention of bringing my message of tolerance to those who will not listen. This, of course, will result in conflict. You cannot have change without conflict - even Jesus knew this. In Matthew 10:34, Jesus said, “Think not that I come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.” He is not speaking of literal violence, but instead of the conflict that is inherent in challenging the ideas held by others - family in particular.

Which brings me back to my very own “narrow minded old man.” Even though I love my family, I am afraid that they will not approve of this new endeavor. I have, in the past, been the source of controversy within my own extended family. For quite a number of years, I didn’t have anything to do with my grandparents or my aunts and uncles, if only because of my difference in beliefs and ideas. They still do not know the full extend of my ‘rebellion’ against their expectations. I am sad that I may never have the opportunity to truly let them know who I am. It is with that same sadness that Jesus said “I came not to send peace, but a sword.”

Though the path I walk places me directly into conflict with my loved ones and asks of me to be uncharacteristically confrontational, I still have faith that I can make a difference. If nothing else, I know that I will have been true to myself and to the Divine. That alone makes me worthy of this task.

Originally Posted September 28, 2007

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written by John \\ tags: Bible, Family, Freedom, Humanity, Life, Religion

Above Photo by Jack Dorsey. Photo Below by Miguel B.

There is a lot to be said in regards to the power and meaning behind one person’s name. When we utter the names of great men and women, we evoke something of what they stood for. These names can be as ancient as Alexander the Great or as modern as Benazir Bhutto and stir a range of intense emotions, negative and positive. In myths and fairytales, names have a supernatural effect on reality whether it is breaking a curse by guessing the name of a devilish imp, or defending the king’s name to restore his kingdom. In tribal cultures, naming calls for an elaborate ceremony in which the person to be named undergoes various trials and tests to prove readiness for adulthood. It is little wonder actors, actresses, musicians, and other entertainers choose to change their names or take stage names; they want to be hard to forget.

Alternatively, there are those who wish to forget. I haven’t seen or talked to my blood father since I was five or six, and wouldn’t recognized him if I passed him by on the street. After long and hard thought, I decided that I no longer wanted to carry his name. There was too much pain and weakness in his name for me. The name I chose to have instead needed to represent all my strengths and uniqueness; I wanted to be the first in a new family line. So when I did finally settle on a name, I made sure that it wasn’t a name that I would have to share with anyone else. I doubt I am alone in changing my name to distance myself from blood relatives, as there are a lot of broken families in this world.

Perhaps rooted in the superstitions regarding names and naming, there is an important truth concerning human nature. I can’t quite discern what truth that would be, though. What I do know is that even if I’m not the person being called, I can’t help but react to the sound of my name on an emotional level. My name seems to be apart of me, integral to my personality, beliefs, and thoughts.

Currently, I write under the pseudonym, John Pageless. I am becoming more dissatisfied with writing under this pseudonym. While I fear the consequences of blogging under my real name, I am also ashamed that I have been hiding behind this pseudonym. Here is the painful truth about blogging - everyone can read what you write. Employers and future employers, aunts, uncles and grandparents, brothers, sisters, friends and complete strangers - everyone can read this blog.

I chose to write under this pseudonym to protect myself from the harsh judgement of the off-line world. But is it worth my integrity? What I say here means a great deal to me. When I talk about religious tolerance and spiritual growth, I hope you understand that these are not just hollow words - I put my whole self out on this blog. Except my name, that is…

Well, I think what I say here is worthy of my name, so I don’t feel I should hide it any longer. My real name is John Michael Crovis. For those playing the home game, you are correct in guessing that my wife is Cathy Crovis of Ripples of Improvement. We both started blogging about the same time, although Cathy began her blog using her real name, where as I wasn’t so sure that was a wise idea. I am not sure what to expect now that I’m officially blogging under my real name, but my hope is that little, if anything, will change.

We shall see…

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written by John \\ tags: Blogging, Family, Individuality, Name

Photo Above by Franco Folini. Photo Below by Aidan Jones.

Early last week, I was told a friend of mine was in the hospital with a serious lung infection. He had a felt a very sharp pain in his chest when he breathed and, believing that it might be serious, checked himself in to the hospital. Due to the infection, he has fluid and growths on his lungs, causing his breathing to become labored. In an attempt to drain off the fluids and slow the infection, he underwent a number of surgeries to have drainage tubes inserted into his lungs.

Since I’ve heard of his illness, I have of made it a point to try visiting every few days - first time this past Wednesday and again just Sunday. This was a man who was in my wedding party and was the one who made me realize that I wanted a relationship with the woman who became my wife. While we don’t see much of each other, I consider him an important part of my life.

I want you to understand the type of guy he is; the man’s had a hard life. It’s not my place to divulge the details of his past, but I will say he’s had the hardest life out of anybody I’ve ever known. For this reason, he’s very guarded and difficult for most people to gauge. This friend is brutally honest, unusually curt, and always sarcastic. For someone like myself who thrives on open communication and regular validation, it is easy to be intimidated by him whether he means to be intimidating or not. Yet, somehow, I managed to gain his trust and friendship.

On Sunday, I saw him at his most vulnerable. I saw tubing snaking out of him limply like vines, his head nodding due to the morphine drip, and heard the shallow rasp of his breathing. He couldn’t say much, or even move much of his own volition. Seeing him reduced from being hard as nails to practically helpless is heart breaking and painful.

As I left that day I realized something; being a minister could mean seeing people such as my friend at their absolute weakest on a regular basis. Not only that, but it would be my job to console family members, be fully present to help them with their grief, and yet not show my own weakness in front of them. I asked myself if I could be that person, and I wasn’t so sure. Then I asked myself if I wanted to be that person. I immediately answered that I did.

At this point in my life and with my current financial difficulties, I am at least eight or ten years away from becoming a minister - perhaps longer. I’ve often taken the easiest path in life and yet had never been truly satisfied. I guess I grew up a little bit last Sunday. I’m not sure if I would be a successful minister or not, but that isn’t the point; I want to make this world a better place. This is one way in which I can make a career out of making the world a better place. I can’t let go of that.

Am I afraid for my friend? Yes, I’m scared for his life. But this situation has also taught me a valuable lesson, and I would be a fool to ignore what I have learned. Regardless of what happens, I should hold on to that lesson, because it makes me a better person and because all suffering should have a meaning.

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written by John \\ tags: Family, Growth, Life, Ministry

Above Photo by Francisco Antunes. Photo Below by Prakhar Amba.

Over the past several weeks, I’ve been feeling out of touch with myself spiritually. I really needed to push everything aside and give myself some time to reconnect. If you haven’t guessed it by now, my recent absence is due to this reason. Despite writing about spirituality almost everyday, I’ve realized that alone doesn’t make me feel spiritual. I needed a time without distractions to focus on my spiritual well-being. It isn’t easy finding that time, but it is important that we each try to do so.

Although there are many important advantages to our culture becoming more secularized, there has been one important disadvantage - the loss of the Sabbath day. Whether you attend church or not, I think everybody can appreciate a full day of rest. Not only did this day serve as a time of spiritual reflection, but also served as a chance for family members to reconnect. We are an incredibly busy people; without a mutual day of rest we have the tendency to lose touch with the people we care about.

For me, that means losing touch with my wife. I didn’t have off this Valentine’s Day and I knew that lately we haven’t spent as much time together. This offered me another compelling reason to give this blog a rest for a few days. More importantly, my resistance to the idea of letting go of tending to my blog for a week signaled for me that I was becoming increasingly sucked in by the digital world, while neglecting the intrinsically human experience of spirituality.

And it isn’t just the on-line world that sucks away at our souls; television, video games, music, work, and even books or literature can serve to distance ourselves from our friends, our family, and the self. At times it is necessary to push all of this away, cut ourselves free from our preoccupation with entertainment or success and focus on each other. Too much of anything can have a negative impact on our lives and reliance on any one thing as an escape from reality can become an addiction.

All these reasons show why in the book of Genesis God rests on the seventh day of creation. The writers of Genesis were setting an example for humanity to follow. We humans, as a society or as individuals, make a thing holy or secular; the Sabbath day was once holy and can be again for those who choose to make it so. However, it would take the agreement between many different spiritual paths, including those who are not religious, to make a mutual day of rest a reality again. That isn’t likely to happen again for a long time; such is the marching beat of progress.

Can we, however, hold one day a week holy just for ourselves? We each only try for ourselves.

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written by John \\ tags: Family, God, Humanity, Prayer, Ritual, Spirituality

Just before this Christmas Holiday, Cathy Crovis from RipplesofImprovement.com tagged me for this rather morbid task of writing my own eulogy. I am supposed to write it to reflect the goals and dreams I have for the future. The purpose of this endeavor is to give focus to what I want to accomplish in my lifetime. Instead of using this opportunity to poke fun at myself and the task at hand, I thought it would be a nice change of pace to actually take this seriously. Well, not too seriously; after all, there is a point at which this could become depressing rather than enlightening. So, with no further explanation needed, and far too much given already, I present to you…

The Eulogy of John Michael Pageless

Photo by Maciej Lewandowski

Reverend John Michael Pageless lived a full life of joy, love, and worthy accomplishments in the field of religious tolerance and spiritual exploration. John Pageless, the son of Albert and Marie Pageless, began life in a lower-middle class family in the Baltimore County suburbs of Maryland. Although he and his family did struggle through economic hardships during his childhood, he still learned from the experience of his mother’s candor and open-minded views, as well as his father’s sensibilities and sense of humor. These traits would later become the hallmarks of a great man.

John Pageless was baptized Catholic, raised Lutheran and later non-denominational Christian, but was constantly infatuated with all the religions of the world. When he had become a teenager, he delved deeply into non-Christian religions, such as Buddhism and Qabalah, from which he would develop his views on God and religion now popularly known as Omnitheism.

In the fall of 2006, he married his best friend’s sister, Mrs. Pageless, with whom he would spend the rest of his life. He would later attribute his successes in life to Mrs. Pageless during her Eulogy, given only three years ago. He said, “Behind every good man, there is a great woman. It may be clique, but it wouldn’t have become a clique if it was not true. I am an example of such. One can hardly argue that we are both very successful in our later years together, but I would have to insist that her success was far greater than mine, as she was solely responsible for all of her own accomplishments, and a good portion of those attributed to myself. I would have never made it through seminary without her by my side…”

As a Minister of the Unitarian Universalist church, he became a staunch proponent of liberal religion and religious tolerance. With his inspiration, the Unitarian Universalist Association, in conjunction with other liberal churches and multi-faith organizations, challenged and defeated the political attacks on religious freedoms made by fundamentalists in the early part of the twenty first century. He also became known as America’s Minister, having written numerous best selling books on the subject of liberal religion, and was council for every president since Chelsea Clinton took office in 2017.

With his influence, John Pageless ensured equality for people of all peaceful religions - including the non-religious. He also reconfirmed the separation of church and state, and set up the United Nation’s World Religion Congress to promote interfaith dialogue on an international level. Yet despite his importance to the world at large, he never failed to place his duties as a husband and father ahead of his professional calling. He is survived by his son, David Alexander Pageless, and his daughter, Alexandra Diane Pageless, both of who have inherited their parents’ dedication to making the world a better place.

Rev. John Pageless had once said that he believed we each end so that someone else may begin. So as we reflect on the life of this man and mourn his passing, let us remember that his absence is a challenge to each of us to begin the journey to do great things. He invites us all to change the world as he did.

One thing this eulogy didn’t mention is how I would die. I want to have the privilege to reenact an ancient Sumarian ritual, recently found in the texts of the unearthed “Necronomicon.” After repeatedly assuring the audience that this ritual poses no danger, I would start the ritual that would result in the summoning of Cthulhu. This ancient demon-priest would then swallow me whole, leaving only my left foot for burial. My last words would be “I could be wrong.”

So that I am not the wet-blanket who ends this string of premature post-humorous remarks, I’m tagging Rev. Dan Harper of Yet Another Unitarian Universalist to write his own eulogy. I look forward to seeing what he writes and hope it involves another Mythos deity; after all, the world needs more H.P. Lovecraft references.

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written by John \\ tags: Career, Death, Family, Humor, Inspiration, Love, Religion, Religious Tolerance

Photo by Sharon Mollerus

Is this yet another regular feature on The Pageless Book? Oh, yes it is. “Friday Vibes” is commentary on three or four blog posts that I feel my readers may be interested in. For this first edition of “Friday Vibes,” I have decided to get into the holiday spirit. I do not know what it is, but I no longer feel as grinch-ish. I am sure it’s just a temporary condition and I’ll be back to my old self soon - heart size and all. Until then, I’d like to point out three excellent articles concerning Christmas that fellow bloggers published this week.

The Holiday Season… How to make it Authentic

If you are like me, and despise the materialistic or commercial elements of the holiday season, then perhaps you would like to look at the article “The Holiday Season…. How to Make it Authentic.” Jennifer, from Goodness Gracious, confronts the inherent problems with Old Saint Nick and gift giving. By suggesting alternative solutions and asking her readers to think about what is truly important to their Christmas, she provides us with tools with which we can rewrite our holiday traditions.

I like this article not only because it appeals to adult sensibilities, but also to my inner child as well. Jennifer shows that Christmas does not need to be all about the gifts, yet shows how we can keep the childlike spirit of Christmas alive. All you have to do is ask what it is about Christmas that is important and down play elements that are not as important. It just takes a little imagination.

Coming Home for Christmas (after de-conversion)

Richard, from De-Conversion, wrote an excellent essay about what Christmas means from an Atheist’s point of view. “Coming Home for Christmas (after de-conversion)” evokes images and impressions of childhood, drawing a sharp comparison between the understanding of the world as an adult with the beliefs we hold as a child. His musings on the subject of Christmas are bitter-sweet, deeply personal, and not exactly what some religious folks might expect from an Atheist.

I have to admit to identifying strongly with this article. Feeling regularly at odds with this holiday myself, I appreciate how hard it is to participate in Christmas without accepting it’s full meaning. Reading this article gave me some perspective and insight into my own feelings regarding Christmas.

A Yule Ritual

Finally, I want to offer something a little bit *different* concerning the holiday season. Posted over at The Sacred Paths is a Wiccan Yule Ritual, and I urge you to take a moment to read it. I really enjoy the Wiccan take on the holidays; something about the rituals and the symbols they associate with the Solstices and Equinoxes speaks to me in a way that the Christian celebrations never have. I might even have to suggest incorporating some Wiccan elements into my own holiday celebration. If you are looking into new traditions for your family, this is a great place to start.

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written by John \\ tags: Blogging, Christian, Christmas, Family, Holidays, Ritual, Tradition, Websites

It’s confession time again for yours truly. This time ‘round, I’m venting about Christmas. Here’s a big surprise - I don’t like it. I haven’t looked forward to the Christmas season for a long time. It isn’t due to the religious implications of this time of year. I can handle hearing about the birth of Christ; I actually find it to be rather inspirational. No, the reason I despise Christmas is the intrusion of this holiday on every aspect of our society for a period of a month and a half.

From between Black Friday and New Years Eve, there is this unrealistic expectation that everyone should be in good cheer. We’re suppose to maintain this attitude while listening to the same repetitive music in every public venue and spending copious amounts of money on gifts. To make matters worse, everyone in the whole country is competing for the same gifts, leading to traffic jams, over worked sales clerks, irate customers, and fist fights over toys that will most likely be broken before the end of January. Even if you had managed to get your Christmas shopping done early, you still have to deal with the influx of Christmas commercials, mindless news casts covering the Christmas rush, massive decorating projects, sending out Christmas cards, and wrapping the presents for Christmas day.

Is it any wonder that there’s a Christmas Resistance Movement? Buy Nothing Day? Call me a scrooge if you must, but I think Christmas is a waste of time, money, and energy. There’s nothing spiritual about these material things and nothing special about this one day out of the year.

My wife is attempting to break me out of my funk in regarding to this holiday season. She has offered me an alternative that I’m seriously thinking about implementing; a new family tradition. This tradition would de-emphasize the importance of gift giving and reinforce Christmas as a celebration of family. That is, after all, what the story of Jesus’s birth is about; the completion of one man and one woman by the inclusion of a child. Nothing could be more special.

So I’m left with thinking about the possibilities of what this new tradition would include. It should be fairly obvious what I believe should be left out… Is it too much to ask that a spiritual holiday be about spirituality? I want to hear your ideas on what the Christmas season should be and how it could be.

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written by John \\ tags: Christmas, Family, Holidays, Humor, Inspiration, Tradition