One of the best known characters Charles Dickens created is Ebeneezer Scrooge. We may not like to admit it, but we tend to be a lot like him. We get so caught up in the busy-ness of life that we miss out on the living of it. As you recall, Scrooge is visited by three ghosts who help him transform his life.
The Ghost of Christmas Past, reminds him of his youth. He is young and optimistic, fun to be with and loving. He is just starting his career, working for a man who is a mentor in living as well as working. Scrooge is happy, and in love.
The Ghost of Christmas Present is an interventionist. This apparition shows him the person he has become. He is fixated on the accumulation of money, but he has forgotten how to use it. He is disdaneful of other people, but then he doesn't treat himself very well either. He doesn't provide himself with proper light at night nor warmth. He doesn't even feed himself very well. Inspite of his wealth, he is unhappy and unloved, except for his only nephew. His late sister's son believes the soul of the person his mother loved is locked away inside of Ebeneezer somewhere. He tries every Christmas to lure him out with the love of family.
The Ghost of Christmas Future takes Ebenezzer to a grave that is covered over with weeds. The money he pursued doesn't maintain his grave. The people from whom he isolated himself stay away. His life meant nothing; his death even less.
In the current state of our ecomony, we naturally focus our attention on having enough money to keep a roof overhead and food on the table. When money is tight and prices are high, people tend to become more frugal. The danger is that stinginess is only a breath away from frugal. Our world shrinks to fit our wallet. When asked to contribute to charity, we claim we have nothing to share.
You might be wondering why I'm writing about a Christmas story on Palm Sunday. After all, we are just about to celebrate Passover and Easter. Think about what these holy days are for. The days leading up to Passover prepare us to leave our old lives, our old ways of thinking behind. As we begin the journey to becoming our legendary selves, we will keep ourselves motived by reminding ourselves of why we're doing this; why this is important; why we have to suffer by breaking old habits, and perhaps, losing some friends; why we want so much to be happy and fulfilled. Easter celebrates resurrection. Again, it brings a message of new life. As the renewal of vision, hope and determination, it is the promise that we won't simply end on our final day. Ebenezzer Scrooge was indeed "resurrected," giving him new life to do what he needed to do to be remembered as a man who was joyful and encouraging, who contributed to his community. His friend and former partner, Marley, marked him to be passed over by Death, who awaited him with the chains he had forged for himself. Instead, He was to be remembered as a loving and kind uncle, and a mentor to Tiny Tim.
Several of the inspirational books I have read, including Dr. Norman Vincent Peale's "The Power of Positive Thinking" offers a very useful suggestion. Write your own obituary. Project yourself to the end of you life and write about your accomplishments, your contributions to your community, organizations to which you donated your time and/or money. Include everything you are leaving behind that matters to you, or that you think will matter to someone else. This will serve as your Ghost of Christmas Future. This is what people will recall and say about you. This is your legend.
No comments:
Post a Comment