What moves us?

There are times in our lives when we experience something that moves us. We may be moved to tears, to action, or even to turn away. We see, hear, read, or taste something that stirs something within us. These emotional triggers hit hardest and have the most effect when we least expect them to breach the walls that we erect to protect ourselves. Some chink in our armor is found and feelings come unbidden and we have to deal with them. Why do we gird ourselves in this armor or hide behind walls?

Sometimes being moved can be painful so it is understandable that we would want to keep the pain at bay. Much of the time, however, a moving experience, even many of the ones that bring some pain, enrich us. Avoidance means closing ourselves off from the things that makes up a rich life.

Whether we refuse to let people close because we fear that they might hurt us, or if we choose not to eat certain foods because we did not like it as kids, or we have only eaten it poorly prepared, we potentially miss out on something wonderful.

One of my traditional holiday activities is to listen to what I consider to be the greatest Christmas song of all time, “Fairytale of New York” by the Pogues. It always makes me feel melancholy and never fails to cause me to have to wipe tears from my eyes. It moves me. It gets through my armor every time. It isn’t entirely pretty, Shane certainly isn’t, and the words cause me to feel pain, but it is one of my favorite songs anyway.

Here is a video of the song. Whether it moves you the same way as it does me is irrelevant. What matters is that we all find a way to be moved during this holiday season. This works for me:

Happy Holidays to everyone! Whatever your reason for the season may be, I hope it is a wonderful time for you. Cheers!