Whatever your wishes to Santa may be, I hope that they do come true for you. I would just like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

May you and your family experience peace, joy and harmony. May we also extend that peace, joy and harmony to people around us. With the thought of peace, loving kindness, compassion and understanding towards each other, we will be able to make our common dream comes true - that one day we are living in peace and harmony.

Differences divide while similarities bond us together. There was a saying which I chanced upon previously but I couldn’t recall the author of it now; it goes, “One day people will realise that there is only one race in this world - the human race.” Let us starts peace from within us.

Thank you Cathy for sharing the lyrics of Imagine by John Lennon with me in the previous post.

Imagine by John Lennon

Imagine there’s no Heaven
It’s easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there’s no countries
It isn’t hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

“What is that?” is a short film directed by Constantin Pilavios about a conversation, between a father and his son, when sparrow landed in front of them.

There was an email, with a very similar story, which I received back in 2006. Whichever came first, I do not know. But I hope, through the conversation of the father and his son, we could all be brought back to the time when we were young. Did our parents not shower us with tender love and patience?

This short film reminded me of the many conservations between my inquisitive four years old niece and my mother. Whenever she was watching TV programs with my mother, she would always ask her grandmother what was going on in the show. When my mother answered her question, she would pause to think for a moment and continue to ask another question.

This process of question and answer would just go on and on; the little one never seemed to run out of questions. However, no matter how many questions the little one asked, my mother would always answer in a gentle, patient and loving manner.

I was also reminded of the few conversations one of my aunts had with my grandmother. My grandmother is going to ninety-five soon and she tends to forget about certain things. Like the father in the short film, she would ask the same question repetitively or repeat the same words again and again. But my aunt would always answer her gently and lovingly with a smile.

What similarity can you see between my niece and my grandmother? One is four years old and another at ninety-five years old. Now, if we think about it, my grandmother was once young like my niece and probably with an inquisitive mind. My niece will one day be old like my grandmother and may tend to get forgetful too.

The young will not be with us forever as they move out of the house one day to start their own lives. The best memories are the attention, love and acceptance we can give to them now; these will positively influence them to act the same way toward their children.

The old too will not be with us forever as they will pass on one day. Let them leave with loving thoughts, much as the love and care which they showered upon us when we were young.

Dr. Susan asked on her blog, “Wouldn’t it be nice to live in a world where war was no longer necessary?” Yes and it is certainly more than nice to live in a world with peace and harmony. Wars are always cruel and from history, we have learnt that they bring forth sufferings and destruction to people and the environment. Through love and respect for each other differences, living in peace and harmony is achievable.

From a quotation, which I have come across previously, “there is only one race - the Human Race.”

“Don’t be angry with children, you’ve come along the same way. Don’t laugh at old people; you’d go to the same way.” - Japanese proverb shared by Nyanko from Rain Cats And Dogs.

A tribute to all mothers and fathers in the world. The write up below was translated directly from a Chinese poster I saw, pinned up, on one of the doors at my sister’s house. A gentle reminder that we were once ‘old’ when we were young. Does this make sense to you?

A Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers in the world!

When I am Old

When I am old and not my original self,
Please be understanding and be patient with me.

When I spill the soup on my own clothes,
And forget how to tie my shoelaces,
Please think about how I had taught you, step by step, to tie your shoelaces.

When you are tired of the words, which I am repeating,
Please listen patiently and don’t interrupt me.
When you were young, I had to repeat the same story again and again until you fell asleep.

When I need you to shower me,
Please don’t blame me.
Do you remember how I had to coax you to take your shower?

When I am helpless with new technology and things,
Please don’t make fun of me.
Think about how I patiently answered every ‘Why’ you had.

When both my legs are too tired to walk,
Please stretch out your strong hand to support me.
Just as I stretched out my hand to you, when you were learning to walk.

When the topic of our conversation slip my mind,
Please give me a little time to recall.
Actually, whatever the topic of our conversation is of no importance.
I will be contented, as long as you are listening to me by my side.

When my time has come, please don’t be sad.
Understand me, support me,
Just as how I treated you, when you were starting to learn about living.