Can it really be that two years ago you were in a coma? In some ways it feels like such a long, torturous two years, and in other ways its been two years of courageous acceptance of the challenge to come back to the world of the journeyers. It is, again, paradoxical. Time is fleeting and time is endless. Time heals and time erodes. Time passes and time stands still. It is hard and it is rewarding. It is sad and there is so much to be grateful for. You are doing great and you will never be the same. You are forever changed, both for the better (more intimate, more integrity, more liberated), and for the harder (more memory loss, more chaotic energy, more struggle). Yet, at the essence, it is the Christmas of the millennium. The awesome wonder of being alive to celebrate this marker of time and to know it, really know the significance of it, is such a gift.

Being alive isn't enough. Being aware is the key. You are both alive and aware of the significance of this. Your Christmas tree in all its beauty and symbolism, is the perfect tree for your millennium Christmas. You are the most intimate and touched by it that you have ever been. What more of a fitting symbol is there? Ornaments from the past, childhood and motherhood memories, love and warmth in the present, twinkling white lights representing eternity.

Amidst the bustle and scrambling, there is the treasured inner peace of integrity, culminating in the feeling of intimacy with your tree. Early morning hours with fireplace and tree, both throwing off light and warmth. Christmas Eve with family and Christmas Day with us. Your millennium Christmas is complete.

Peace and intimacy, love and integrity, they are rightfully yours this Christmas. May you cherish every moment and feel proud with every breath.