overload « cookiecrumbstoliveby cookiecrumbstoliveby Life through the eyes of "cookie" Search Home About Blog Awards (albeit undeserved) Tag Archives: overload heightened senses…. Dec2 “Memory believes before knowing remembers. William Faulkner (Victorian Christmas Greeting card) Every memory seems more keen. Every sight seems more bright. Every tear seems more heavy. Every scent seems more strong. Every sound seems more bold. Every heartache seems more piercing. Every loss seems more painful. Every joy seems more complete. Every touch seems more dear… Each year, finding ourselves standing before what makes Christmas just that, Christmas… Our senses, our thoughts, our tastes, our recollections… seem hopelessly more intense, more sharp, more profound… Be that a blessing or be that a curse. Pain is greater. Suffering is more fierce. Joy is more contagious. While satisfaction hangs precariously in the balance. There are those who gravitate toward this more mystical and magical time full of giddiness and glee… while others wish to close their eyes, not openning them again until mid January. The sensory overload can be overtly overwhelming or palpably underwhelming. And yet it is in that overload, be it over or under, that we actually become more…. raw… more open… and even more vulnerable. And it is in that vulnerability that the ego slightly abates…. the guard slips ever so quietly, While pretense evaporates as the dew in first light… As we are splayed wide open. And it is in that moment of pure raw vulnerability that the heart finally realigns, beating rhythmically for the first time since the tragic Fall, as it is once again, albeit briefly, in sync with all of Creation… For no word from God will ever fail.” Luke 1:37 5 Comments Posted in Christian Spirituality, Creativity, Gratitude, Inspiration, Transition Tagged abate, beating, bold, briefly, bright, Christianity, Christmas, color, complete, contagious, dear, death, ego, Faith, Family, giddiness, glee, God, Grace, gratitude, gravitate, heartache, heavy, Hope, intensify, Jesus, Joy, life, loss, love, Luke 1:37, open, overload, overwhelming, pain, painful, pains, piercing, raw, realigns, rhythmically, Santa Claus, satisfaction, scent, sight, sound, strong, suffering, tear, the Fall, time, touch, Transition, Victorian Christmas Card, vulnerability, vulnerable, William Faulkner Boxing Day–A day of giving, remembering and recouping Dec26 The feeling remains that God is on the journey, too. Saint Teresa of Avila Today the boxes, the ribbons and bows, that were just 24 hours prior, tucked neatly and gloriously adorned under the shadows of a festive tree, now lie discarded, being all but forgotten. The tremendous crescendo of the dizzying frenetic days which lead up to the collision of the cosmos of family, friends, the sacred, the secular, the shopping, the cleaning, the cooking, the traveling the sharing, the tolerating, the worshiping, the singing, the giving, the taking, the buying, the selling, the ordering, the joy, the reflection, the reverence, the mystery. . . All sadly over in the blink of an eye. Today we trudge like automatons through a sensory overload of the leftovers from a frantic month long pace, literally picking up the pieces of family, friends, and of a season now spent. Weary and bleary eyed the skip in our step and the joy to the world on our lips are each suddenly slowed and silent as we find ourselves slowly exhaling. Tired, we begin to re-pack the treasures and mementos of our lives, back into the dusty musty boxes, sending them back to the tombs of attics and basement and storage for a 3 season hibernation with the hope of returning next December. Yet the echoes of keeping Christmas in our hearts all through the year, for many, will slowly grow all but silent as we transition from the old to the new. And yet as we prepare to hunker down for the remainder of a long, cold and silent winter with the thoughts of now warmer brighter days toying with the shadows of our dark somber moods, we must lay claim that despite the waning excitement from an advent of long anticipation, the triumphant delivery of Joy, and the passing of old time to new, ours is not a solitary journey. Yet, as we find ourselves on this morning after, feeling overwhelmed and a bit lost as we sift through the debris of yet another year’s season of festivity– we are awarded a single small respite and an opportunity to suck in a much needed second wind. For today is Boxing Day. A needed day of transition. Below I’ve added a brief history behind this day of deep English tradition or for those of us of the Western Church, the day St Stephen’s Feast. . . (Information taken from wincalander.com) Boxing Day History Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated the day after Christmas in Britain. It’s history dates back to the Age of Exploration. The priest would place a wooden box on each ship and crew member’s would drop coins into in hopes of ensuring a safe return. The box would remain on the ship, upon it’s return, the priest would say a prayer of thanksgiving and in return receive the box and its contents. He would safeguard the box until Christmas, where he would then open it and share the contents with the poor. The “alms box” is a similar tradition observed in many churches still today. Boxing Day Facts & Quotes 1.In the late 18th century, Lords and Ladies of large estates would practice Boxing Day. They would do this by boxing up leftover food, clothing and other household items. These items would be distributed amongst their tenants and workers the day after Christmas. 2.For Boxing Day, many charitable organizations practice a form of giving boxes to the poor. Operation Christmas Child is one such organization. 3.December 26th is also St. Stephen’s Day for the Western Church. The Feast of St. Stephen honors the first Christian martyr. Stephen was stoned to death outside the walls of Jerusalem, shortly after the Crucifixion. –Boxing Day Top Events and Things to Do –Clean out your closets and donate to a local charity. –Donate to a local food bank. –Prepare a Christmas box for a charitable organization. –Donate money to a church or other community group which cares for the poor and elderly. 3 Comments Posted in Christian Spirituality, Family, Gratitude, Teaching, Transition Tagged advent, anticipation, Boxing Day, Christmas, debris, History, Joy to the World, overload, packing up, photography, respite, season, St Stephens Feast, teaching, tired, Transition Topics Topics Select Category Art Christian Spirituality Cooking/ Creativity Creativity current events Family Gardening / the yard Gratitude History Humor Inspiration Nature politics Teaching Transition Travel Month by month September 2022 M T W T F S S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 « Aug Archives Archives Select Month September 2022 August 2022 June 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 Who I am Julie (aka Cookie) Hi, my name is Julie. I'm a 62-year-old​ wife, mom, and a retired educator. I was a high school art teacher for almost 31 years. I was lovingly given the nickname "cookie" by my students--hence the title of this blog. For a more detailed profile of who I am ---my interests and passions--- please see the "About" page regarding what makes the life of a "Cookie' View Full Profile → Blog at WordPress.com. Follow Following cookiecrumbstoliveby Join 867 other followers Sign me up Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now. cookiecrumbstoliveby Customize Follow Following Sign up Log in Report this content View site in Reader Manage subscriptions Collapse this bar Loading Comments... Write a Comment... Email (Required) Name (Required) Website