Re-Joyce in that which was lost and is found

 A true confession. We've grown a little Grinchy about Christmas. For a few years now, we've purposely avoided the "trappings" of the season and have tried to strictly focus on Jesus Christ during the holiday month. We thinned down our crates and crates of decorations, most of which were cheap accumulations anyway, and gave away the rest to my daughters that might have any sentimental value. We tossed our tree for a much smaller one, then finally opted for a Menorah. Perhaps we just spent too many years without the wonder of the season minus grandchildren that got us to this Humbug status. Maybe our Christmas socks were too tight? So when we learned in October we were responsible for decorating the office for Christmas, we were a bit reticent of this assignment. Oh yes, we were reticent. We, of all people assigned to decorate. So we didn't jump in enthusiastically like most do right after Thanksgiving. The first dilemma was just getting down the trees and bins of decor from the highest rafter you could ever possibly imagine only to find the lights were burned out, mostly dead, and loose in the plugs. (Am I describing us or the strands?) Faced with these realities, Micheal arranged a driver and took us to a specialty store on "Commerce Street" where 2 strands of lights cost ₹9000, roughly $100! Would you say Roy's Wonderland has a little monopoly on the Indian market? The prices were insane and the meaning of it all seemed entirely lost. And in despair, I bowed my head. Through the thick and deafening traffic jams on the drive home, we said, "there is no Peace on Earth".

                     'Zat you, Santhu Claus? 

December 5th, we could delay no longer, we offered our daily prayer for help from above and resigned ourselves to the task at hand. I took my iPod full of Christmas music to the office to see if I could dredge up some holiday cheer in my soul. My Global Christmas playlist of carols from around the world was made for this moment, right? True enough, the music created a much needed festive atmosphere for the daunting task. What I wasn't expecting at all was the supply of two helper elves. Talk about unexpected blessings!  Without my even asking, Aftahb and Bhanu had fetched the ladder and began assembling the tree and assisting me in every possible way. This wasn't going to be so bad after all. In fact, with their help it was starting to actually be fun!  With no shared language, we simply used universal signs for "up a little higher," "a little to the left." I wondered what this experience might mean to a couple of Hindus? The Christmas tree and especially stars are "THE" symbol for Christianity in India. Would I be willing to set up a memorial to the Hindu gods, even if a friend asked for help? Probably not. So their selflessness moved me. The fact that these two men were completely willing to help me see this project to the end melted my sticky soul like a peppermint stick in a mug of hot chocolate. There was newfound joy in the air and in my soul! I loved decorating for Christmas this year!

      The painstaking task of untangling beads.            Blessed are the truly patient! 

Thank you Bhanu for being my Christmas miracle!

                      Good Will Toward Men!

Micheal adding some final decorative touches to the topiary.

Another defrosting of my frozen heart came with an unusual request from one of our newfound friends. Joyce is a neighbor of ours we met from one floor down. She was immediately enamored with my foreign status and began fashioning me as both Queen of Scotland and her best friend inside her vivid and creative imagination. She'd been to church with us once and we took her to the youth dance, both of which I wouldn't call successful experiences. She, like many teens, found the starting time of church too early anyway and opted out of weekly attendance. So when she made this odd request, I was filled with a bit of dread. She explained since moving to the Brigade, she hadn't made many friends and would I be willing to host a birthday party for her, complete with cake and party guests? Me? A party planner? Well...um..sure, I suppose so.  With a lull in duties, I couldn't truthfully say I was too busy. So I contacted the expat families in our ward and asked them if they could spare an hour or two for a unique service project with a few of their oldest daughters. Bless their hearts. These are truly busy ladies with 9 school age children between them, juggling  all of their crazy schedules in a place that doesn't lend itself to serenity. I was so thankful for their show of support to proceed. I also invited Juli to come, our other young married American friend. Many times I had to burst Joyce's bubble with the fantasy celebration she had concocted. We were not the Make A Wish Foundation after all, and I couldn't ask the guests to all wear red dresses for a Masquerade theme. The cake she wanted was beyond impossible, especially for India. My question was, where was her artist mother in all this? Couldn't she pull this party off for her far better than I? Why was she not involved? It's a question I can't answer. And what about little Joyce herself? Would her fragile personality result in another meltdown as we would surely fail to fulfill her fantasy expectations? So again, with a little trepidation but a prayer for help from above, we put on a simple party for Joyce. 

    Not her fairytale castle cake but there were           fireworks ever so briefly!

The guests brought presents!

Moms supplied streamers and banners

We played a get to know you game and laughed and giggled alot.

Joyce was elated and very appreciative of our small and simple efforts to make it a special day for her. I wore my red dress at her request. I couldn't have done it alone so let's hear it for group effort. I felt the joy in my heart that Heavenly Father promises us we'll experience when we are in the service of others.  

So here's the last Christmas miracle in my soul. More confessions. I can be a bit of a music snob. But the last 9 months in India has taught me to just let it all go. Just when you think you can teach the concepts of downbeats and time signatures and fermatas to a developing nation, is the time you realize you are making such a small dent of difference. I mostly just have to put my head down during congregational singing and not watch the choristers. Which is good, because now I can concentrate on the lyrics which is where my attention should've been all along. I've found an empathetic sweetness to the struggling piano players as I too have been practicing my skills on the keyboard and realize I'm no prodigy. My singing voice is absolutely shot and so there is nothing left musically in me to have any false pride in. What has brought me a greater happiness on this mission is in shining the spotlight on others and giving sincere praise for their talents and accomplishments, rather than needing expression of my own. The talent of putting others first is the main talent my Heavenly Father needs me to develop in my life now. I have loved experiencing my own ego needs decrease. He must increase, I must decrease.

For example-- Our missionary district was asked to prepare some musical numbers for the Stake Music Festival. We are an assorted lot of varying talents. Elder Macdonald plays piano and Elder Johnson plays guitar. Elder Rajendra has a dreamy soft pop voice. Sister Pollupalli and Elder Injeti love Pentatonix and want to sing just like them even if they are a little tone deaf. Close enough! Sister Kalyani is an experienced Indian Classical dancer.  I proposed the idea she take the song "Pi's Lullaby" and do an interpretive dance as if she were Mary rejoicing in her role as Mother of the Savior of the world and portray through dance her love for her newborn baby. She took on the challenge beautifully! It was the highlight of the night for me. The Stake Music Festival was excruciatingly long. We cut our #s from 4 to 2 as the night droned on but most groups performed all four songs and every soloist sang a medley, at least.  So even though it was long and hard at times tonight to be an audience member, every one of the performers needed that opportunity to let their light so shine. And shine they did! 

"Let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven. "  Matt 5:16

But also....

"...whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find it."    Matt.16:25

And also....

"...Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost." Luke 15:9