Sometimes, when I take a walk with my dog, Sierra, I can tell that she stops to listen to sounds when I hear only silence.
Occasionally, at a crowded, noisy event in the midst of competing stories, laughter, voices, serving dishes, and music, I can hear my own internal voice saying something kind, admonishing, or even sarcastic (and I’m often exceptionally glad that it doesn’t actually find its way out of my mouth).
Once, I swear I heard my mother’s voice, momentary and soft as if it simply brushed right by my ear. It made me turn and took my breath away for a long moment.
There often is a “song within the silence” and “beauty when there’s nothing there.” These two favorite lines taken from this week’s featured song, December Prayer, written and performed by the incomparable Idina Menzel, reminds us that in a season fraught with noise and motion… it’s always good to stop even momentarily and listen and just be.
One of the new traditions Tom has brought to me in the last eight years has been a quiet night at home watching White Christmas together. It’s his all-time favorite Christmas movie and much to his dismay, I had never seen it. He admittedly had a boyhood crush on Vera-Ellen with her tiny waist, long legs, and cute turned-up nose. But, he loves the story and knows all the words to all the songs.
What I love most about it is not so much the movie itself but what it has come to represent. Tom insists that on the night before our guests arrive or we head off to visit them, we have some quiet holiday time for ourselves… no matter what has yet to be accomplished or crossed off the holiday list. We make a simple dinner and exchange our own gifts. Then, with only the lights of the tree and a fire in the fireplace, we snuggle up with a warm drink to watch White Christmas. That tradition of carving out some simple and quiet time has become one of my favorite things to look forward to during the holidays.
There is music in the silence and beauty when there’s nothing there. As we kick off the month of December and the busy holiday season, I hope you’ll carve out some quiet time for yourself. Look for ways to simplify. Look for ways to listen. Look for ways to simply feel some joy.
Idina Menzel – December Prayer
In the sight of falling snow, and the memories it brings,
In the season when you find some peace, in the simple tender things,
Open your heart and look around, listen, listen
See the beauty when there’s nothing there,
Sing a song within a silence that hope and love are everywhere,
And when the quiet night is falling watch an angel dancing in the air
To the song, the song within the silence, a December Prayer,
A December Prayer.
And the promise that we’re not alone in this place and time,
In the gifts that you give I am humbled and amazed
Far beyond this day and time of year
We are in a state of grace.
Open your heart and look around, listen, listen
See the beauty when there’s nothing there,
Sing a song within a silence that hope and love are everywhere,
And when the quiet night is falling watch an angel dancing in the air
To the song, the song within the silence a December Prayer,
A December Prayer
Hear the song within the silence,
See the beauty when there’s nothing there,
Sing a song within a silence that hope and love are everywhere,
And when the quiet night is falling watch an angel dancing in the air
A December Prayer”
