Going it Alone

  Ever have that friend that you hear from a lot and then all of a sudden just kinda falls off the map?   You might begin to speculate:   Maybe she’s just gotten “busy.” She has had a lot going on with her kids. Maybe I should see if she wants to have lunch. But that might stress her out if she’s already busy. Gosh, I hope it isn’t me. I don’t want to bother her. Maybe I’ll just wait for her to come back around when she’s ready.   In the meantime, your friend has a different narrative going on in her head:   I wish I had someone to talk to about this. But I really don’t want to burden anyone with my problems. Well maybe I could talk to…. No, it’s too humiliating. I wish someone noticed I haven’t been around. Gosh, I hope she still likes me. I don’t want to bother her. I feel so lonely.   For many of us, Christmas is a time of hope and joy, surrounded by loved ones and those we hold dear. But for others, it can be a time of loneliness and anxiety, surrounded by feelings of guilt over the inability to enjoy the blessings of the season.   For some, those unhappy feelings will flee shortly after the ball drops on New Years Eve and life once again surrenders to its normal routine. But for others, these seasons are seemingly endless, ushered in by the loss of a job, the illness of a relative, the challenges of a child, or the strife of a marriage. She may never really say what’s on her mind…   …and you might never really know that someone you care for is totally going it alone.   So the next time you begin to wonder, “what happened to her?” take a minute and reach out. It just might give wings to the hope that is in you.   May the peace of Christ fill your hearts this Christmas season and every day thereafter.