Christmas is about Hope


Beyond the glittering lights on Orchard Road and the sound of carols at shopping malls, I reflect on the meaning of Christmas. Clearly, it means different things to different people. For millions of Christians from all traditions, it is a celebration of God’s kindness and love in the birth of Jesus Christ whom they acknowledge as Lord and Saviour. For others, it is the beginning of the year-end holidays – a time to give and receive, a time to party and have a good time.

For me this Christmas, the word HOPE keeps popping up. HOPE, aptly described as the little voice you hear whisper “maybe” when it seems the entire world is shouting “no”. It is a powerfully positive emotion and in many instances it is the kindest gift of all.

I found this in Unbroken, a powerful World War II story of Olympian Louie Zamperini who survived some 40 days on a raft in the Pacific Ocean without food and water, and more than two years as a POW. Clearly, it was HOPE that kept him and his friends alive in the most brutal conditions.

Last Sunday night, I was a guest at a mini-concert organized by Diamonds on the Street. Crystal Goh and her friends co-created a number of songs with some of the girls at risk from a Girls Home. They shared about their journey of transformation driven by HOPE. Their family and friends who support them give them the HOPE to dream of a better life resulting in a strong drive to reach their potential. It was so inspiring hear about their new-found ambition – one wanted to be a businesswoman, another, a lawyer and so on. And you can see that they now have the HOPE to be because they received the gift of HOPE from people who care.


Last night a number of my colleagues celebrated Christmas with a former colleague and her family. She was struck down with aneurism 15 months ago and has since been in a comatose state. Her husband shared about the HOPE he has in God to answer their prayers for his wife – HOPE is keeping them going. I suddenly remembered the words of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. who said, “We must accept finite disappointment but never lose infinite hope”

We held hands and formed a circle to exercise faith, each in our own way, to give him and his family the gift of HOPE. Together with the family, we do believe and HOPE that our prayers will be answered and she will get out of her comatose state soon.


This Christmas, there are many individuals and organizations sharing the gift of HOPE. Prison Fellowship Singapore, for example, extended HOPE to more than 1000 children of folks who are incarcerated with Christmas hampers of gifts sponsored by individuals and organizations, and personally delivered to their homes. The Boys Brigade “Share-A-Gift” reached out to more than 40,000 beneficiaries this year. Our partner Ripples have created a new series of slippers and are giving away a pair to the needy for every pair sold. And the list goes on.

Thomas Addison reminds us that there are three grand essentials to happiness in this life. And they are something to do, something to love and something to hope for. I often think that happiness is not something we pursue for pursuing it is like chasing after the wind – we will never catch it. Rather it is more like doing something for others, loving someone, giving the gift of hope. In so doing, we will feel the breeze of happiness chasing us from behind.

I can’t possibly express the gift of HOPE more beautifully than Emily Dickenson, “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul – and sings the tunes without words at never stops at all.”

Have a Blessed Christmas and Happy New Year!

Dr. William Wan
Christmas Eve, 2013.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Is priority/reserved seat an entitlement?

Image
Photo: I don't like to squeeze on the MRT Facebook Last week, I took the MRT and it was quite packed. I am a senior citizen and I had hoped that someone would be kind enough to offer me a seat, as has happened before. But not this time. I was standing in front of a younger lady who was seated on the priority seat and busily engaged with her smartphone. I tried to make eye contact with her but chose not to verbally request for the seat. I took the opportunity to do a personal experiment. She looked up at me momentarily, but quickly returned to her smartphone. At the City Hall MRT, we both alighted. I gave way to her as she made her exit and I followed. Quickening my steps, I caught up with her, smiled and said, “Good morning. May I ask you a couple of questions?” She returned a smile and said, “Sure.” I asked her if she would give up her seat to someone in greater need, like a senior citizen. And she replied, “Of course, I would.” I then gently announced that I was the Senior
Read more

Neighbours by Chance, Friends by Choice

Image
Some of my friends have asked me why I have stopped blogging. The truth is I have been busy writing my book Through the Valley: The Grace of Ageing and Dying Well . Now that I have completed it, I will try to blog more regularly. Please accept my apologies. I am a champion of good neighbourliness and have been promoting the idea that we can be friends by choice even though we are neighbours by chance. Over the years, I have reached out to my neighbours by organizing Let’s Makan and initiating greetings and other social contacts to develop friendship. And what have I to show for my effort, you may ask. Truth is, there is latent kindness in all of us – waiting to be unlocked by simple initiatives of reaching out with a smile, a word of greeting, a simple conversation and an opportunity to have a drink or a meal together. Here’s how my neighbours have responded to us: One evening, I came home after work only to find that my wife was not in and I did not have the house key wi
Read more

Unleash the Singa in You

Image
After more than 30 years of service, first as the Courtesy Lion and then as the Kindness Lion, Singa has stepped aside. As Singapore’s mascot for kindness, Singa’s letter calling on real people to step up brought an unprecedented depth of discussion on the topic of kindness. Whether on social media or through letters to the press, Singaporeans were eager to share why they felt Singa should stay or go. There were also serious questions asked of the state of graciousness in Singapore. Press and blogs on Singa's resignation It is evident that kindness still matters to people and that is an encouraging sign of our potential for pro-social change as a nation. The conversations that took place were important in helping us to take stock as a people, and set the tone for how we can move forward in our quest for a kinder society. In his 30 years of faithful service, Singa served as a reminder of the positive values we should constantly strive for.
Read more