Merry Christmas

For as long as I can remember, I've had an intensely personal relationship with God/the Universe/the divine. I never remember a time where God did not exist in my life. I have always felt loved, protected and special because of this relationship. My mom taught me the Sikh prayers and we did them just before I went to sleep. I found them comforting, but not necessary because my conversations with God were so much more fantastical than the prayers that I did not understand. When I got older and understood the meaning of the prayers, their beauty took my breath away. But when I was young, I only needed my thoughts and stories to engage with the divine.

Now I listen to my children talk about God and I love how their relationship with 'God' grows. Gisele wakes me up in the middle of the night to share with me her conversations with God. Last night it was apparently Meneer van Assen's birthday. Meneer van Assen was our elderly neighbour that passed away this past summer. He was a lovely soul and was so kind with the neighbourhood children. We attended his funeral and the children love remembering him. Last night, at about 3:30am, Gisele woke me up to tell me what he was doing and how he was celebrating his birthday with God. I believe there was ice cream. She also says her children, Coollah and Shamiz, have been visiting God and will be staying there for a while for a play date. Nanu (my father who passed away before both of my children were born) is a constant feature in her stories and questions about God.

Gianluca seems to be in a bit of a competition with God. He asks me who I think loves me the most. I tell him that I think God is pure love energy and God loves everyone the most. He disagrees and tells me that HE loves me more than God does and even if HE is mad at me, HE still loves me more than God could ever love me. I'm happy with either scenario.

There will be lots of stories about God, Jesus and angels today while we celebrate this special day. Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas.