Peace on Earth? Good Will Towards Men? 2017 Was The Antithesis Of The Christmas Spirit. Thanks, Mr. President.

7 Days until Christmas. 8 Days until we're bombarded with reminders of what 2017 brought. Certainly no "Peace on earth nor "Good Will toward Men. "Retrospects" of the year’s events will abound, and for most Americans the pictures won’t be pretty. 

This week may be a time for people to slow down, look inward, meditate before the onslaught of memories of the year.  This is especially true for people in the LGBTQ, Muslim, immigrant, Hispanic and African American Communities. Actually for people in any vulnerable group. And the Year of Trump has created a lot of vulnerable communities.

“Peace on Earth”? "Good Will Towards Men”? These Americans have to make their own Christmas sentiments because they cannot in all conscience join Trump's America for Christmas. 

To be more direct: There is absolutely no way one could link those phrases to a Trump Christmas. From before last Christmas, when Trump almost single-handedly erased 50 years of U.S.- China relations with a diplomatic blunder worthy of Dan Quayle.  Peace on earth? ...

through internal bickering and firings. petty tweets, lies and deceit, to an air thick with treason and corruption polluting the Presidency- Good will towards men? 

This Presidency, this political aberration is a mockery to Christmas and the true Christmas spirit.( Link to old article)

Of course, Christmas is bright- for the gullible and believers in Trump’s fantasy. For the Alt Right and White supremicists who’ve never such a forceful “voice” befor. For the Christian Right who envision abortion and gay rights  fading from their  worldview/Christofascist    spectrum of self-righteousness. 

For all others, the brightness, the joy, the altruism of Christmas must be scaled back, must go inward, must be more quiet. Yes, it must recede into its own shell so that it can emerge clear and bright (and even a bit tacky/glittery) in the New Year. 

My husband stand and I believe in what you might call “snuggle therapy”: we hold our bodies close and together for a long time and sometimes we whisper “you and me against the world”. We wanted our Christmas angel-bear tree ornaments to reflect snuggling instead of kissing, but it would have been difficult to position them  on the tree without looking like they were doing something else. But notice that they are definitely focusing on each other while engulfed in the glitz of what could be a metaphor for a Trump Christmas.

Maybe American communities need a form of "snuggle therapy" this Christmas: holding themselves closer, quieter. Sheltering themselves. Observing (but not necessarily participating in) the raucous - and fake - Trump Christmas. Meditating upon the past year. 

Healing.

While meditating on 2017, HOPE should still be an element. Many of Trump's supporters are finally waking up to the fact that Trump and his administration are nothing like what they thought it would be. HOPE has always been a powerful coping mechanism. In my case, for example, it can divert the angst over the year with some humor, so here's my Christmas wish for 2018:

Since Trump has decreed that there will be more visits to the Moon - "What would we do without space?" - what better Christmas present for him next year than to make him the first person to colonize it? With an attractive plan to build a hotel/casino/golf course and, of course, a boutique for Ivanka, he would make a killing!

And the sweetest thing about this gift: we could send The Donald off with a blessing:

"May God bless and keep you, Mr. President -far away from us!*

7 DAYS

This week, individuals, families, whole communities should practice their forms of "snuggle therapy" by being as close to each other as possible. And safe, for the time being, from the onslaught of "retrospectives" and thoughts of more ugly scenes to come.

This following video Christmas card was produced primarily for the immediate neighborhood and friends, featuring a Garden everyone views as a community-builder. From the Meditation Station to the acrylic rock heart, it is looked upon as a sanctuary - a place of peace and reflection. It represents the Christmas spirit all year round. It is our building;s "snuggle therapy." Notice that the Christmas tree is lacking a star on top - that's because the true light of Christmas comes from within.

It serves as my Christmas card to everyone.





 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

* a line borrowed from Fiddler on the Roof the story of which has some odd parallels to our present situation.

Christmas Bliss

The two little boys making faces at each other, sounding noises through their rears and noses while sitting at the breakfast table are really two grown men.

That's love for ya.

They also have a hard time "demagnetizing" in the morning and getting out of bed. They make a point of snuggling at least once during the day and can't understand people who don't snuggle at all. And they each bless the day they found each other.

It was several days after my 65th birthday (June 15th, 2012) that I met Chris. He thought I came on too strong, but when I said "I never promise anything, but I'm a great snuggler," he was hooked.

We didn't say the "L" word until Christmas. We lived "in the present" for what seemed like an eternity at the time. 45 weekend visits from Sacramento and 5 parking tickets after meeting, Chris moved in with me.

We got married last March 28 at San Francisco City Hall. This Christmas is our first as a truly married couple.

True Married Bliss - Acceptance

Chris says "hubby" a lot when we snuggle. Oh, there's "Daddy" and "Lover" but "Hubby"is stressed more. "Hubby" is an expression of mutual love ... and acceptance.

Chris' mother, Janice, has accepted me as  part of the family - her new son-in-law. All I can say at this point is that the sense of family that marriage brings is immense: a loving, welcoming family can make all the difference in a relationship. There is no finer show of respect than simple acceptance.
My very first lover's parents accepted me as an in-law back in the days before same-sex marriage became an idea. No one has any idea of how that made a newly out gay man feel back in 1975. My new mother-in-law has helped to make me the happiest man alive. 

Love. Acceptance. Snuggling. ... and making faces at each other. Everyone should be as blessed this Christmas.