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The gardener sat near the small garden waiting for the
angel; as she approached he looked up at her and an amused
smile lit his face. "What is so amusing?" the angel asked as
she drew close. "They each have bits of the truth and cannot
seem to see they all fit together. The grand picture is
right there and they simply cannot see." The gardener's
smile only seemed more amused by her remark.
"Watch," he said quietly. "They don't put it together as one
single truth, but look at the beautiful tapestry they weave
as they cling to different aspects of the truth. It is so
much richer this way." With that they settled in to watch
over the small garden in companionable silence.
The winter holidays are magical in the garden - while much
of the world trembles with the cold and sleeps, when the
snow blankets all in white stardust, the garden radiates
with magical warmth. The year was drawing rapidly to a
close, and the garden was alive with excitement. The
Halfling curled up contentedly beneath the shelter of the
plant and watched. Because the garden welcomed all from so
many different places, there were many traditions to be
honored during the winter holidays - but all shared, for it
is the season of love and peace.
The Halfling giggled as the butterfly hurried past, the
plant looked her way and wondered at her amusement. "It is
Butterfly," she replied, and pointed as the small butterfly
hurried about trying to capture lights for her celebration.
The plant smiled. "The celebration of lights is the way of
those where Butterfly is from. Butterfly celebrates the
festival of lights," the plant explained.
"When a light that should have extinguished, burned for 8
days and nights. It was a time of great danger and the light
gave them hope. Would you like to hear of the many beliefs
shared here in the garden?" The Halfling nodded, listening
to the plant, was to her, always a special time.
She curled up under the plant's protection, content as the
plant spun wondrous pictures to fill her mind with new
beliefs so she might understand others.
???I do not need to tell you of those who celebrate the birth
as those where you are from do, but perhaps the rest would
like to know of the Tears of the Faeries," the plant said
quietly. The Halfling put her hand to the tiny stone cross
on a silver chain she wore about her neck.
It seemed hard to believe that anyone did not know of the
Tears of the Faeries - how when the baby whose birth was
celebrated during the winter holidays died as a young man
the, faerie folk had wept and their tears had formed tiny
crosses of stone when they touched the earth. How the cross
was a symbol for why he was born and how he died. She
considered the many beliefs she knew little of and nodded -
it was a beautiful tale to her heart and she was happy to
share it.
The Halfling and the plant passed the day watching others
hurry about making their preparations and each belief and
tradition seemed to add yet another layer of beauty and
love. The Halfling wondered at the way each belief could be
so different, yet each still seemed to weave into the magic
of the season effortlessly. She wondered aloud that perhaps
it was that all beliefs were part of the truth, and perhaps
sharing was the key to seeing the truth.
As the day drew to a close the Halfling watched as the snow
wrapped the garden in a pristine blanket of stardust. So
many different wonderful ways to celebrate peace and love in
the still beauty of winter, so many beautiful beliefs. As
she watched the beauty of the winter night, a winter miracle
unfolded before her. The very stars in the deep velvety sky
began to shift - joining together in an enchanted dance
singing ever so softly the secrets of the universe.
As they danced and sang the music began to swell and soar
until it felt it had lifted the Halfling's soul to the very
heights of heaven itself. As the music drifted off into a
dream, the Halfling's consciousness floated back into
herself and she found herself again sheltered under the
plant's protective canopy. "What a lovely dream," she
thought to herself as she yawned and stretched sleepily. As
she looked about the garden the plant smiled knowingly, for
the Winter Holidays were a time of wonders. As she watched,
the stars finished their dance and settled across the garden
like a lace blanket illuminating the magic that is the small
garden.
(c) 2005 Candace |
