The eve of Christmas is apon us yet once again. For some though it is nothing but a reminder of how much you have actually failed over the past year. Christmas always brings with it the hope of a new year. Maybe this year will be different. There is no way a year could be even worse. We are filled with the positive moments and memories that come with such a joyous time of year. For some though it will always be a constant reminder of everything you don’t have. The magic of Crhistmas that my parents created for us as a child seems to be long gone. How can one experience the miracle of the season when we only have to go on-line to get that myth debunked. Nothing is sacred these days. All is layed out to be exposed by the elements. To crush our spirits when we are down and to keep us controlled at least for a while longer.It’s not that as we get older the novelty wears off. It just seems the novelty of living has begun to wear off as we frantically search for a deeper meaning to all of our existence. My reading has taken me to the mid 1800’s. Inside the cover of the book, “Crime and Punishment,” lays the imagery of a time that we can not even fathom. Imagine dirt roads as the main means of getting in and out of town. No cars, horses. Where we have been accustomed to oil and litter on our streets there is the stench of not only animal but human waste. Diseases ran rampant and people were poor. The common meal was blackened bread with some sort of salted meat that was hunted long ago. So now here we are almost a century and half later and although our surroundings have changed our definition of life is still the same. We are being conditioned to always want for more. Never be content for what you have in the moment, if you can be miserable lusting for more. The only way they usually left their spouse and their family dynamic was through death. But now here we are with this incesstual pattern of trying to improve our partner. If they don’t conform to these ridiculous standards that we have set then off we go looking for something new. Something to feed the hunger and lust that never seems to tame.If there is no such thing as a wonderful life then exactly what are we living for. One only has to stop and take notice to their surroundings to understand what I am talking about. It is rare to find any one that can live up to our unrealistic expectations. It is ok to dream so big that even you can not even grasp the reality of it. However though we must learn to live and play together because that is the only true way to finally feel at peace. We walk around on pins and needles out of fear. Out of fear what our fellow man is capable of. It is almost Christmas time. A time that is supposed to symbolize family and togetherness. If not family then friends who feel like family. And if not friends than we welcome a listening ear. Something though has changed from a time long forgotten. With everything we have ever wanted right at our fingertips our wonderful life has become commercialized and there really is no turning it off now. We can’t stop what is already happening. We can’t make people stop and take notice. Take notice of our actions and our insatiable quest for fame. Isn’t that what has changed the most. Our desire to sell all moral and our own sense of self down a rabbit hole in the attempt to be remembered for something we are not.The most wonderful life is comforted by serenity. A warm safe place when the rest of the World is in utter chaos. My happiest life is when I am safe and sound in these four walls but not when I am safe, when my whole family is safe. For that brief moment in time there is this tranquil warm feeling pulsing through my veins. Given me the strength and courage to go back out in the world to see if there are others out there just like me. A wonderful life allows me to look deep into the eyes of my furry companions and seem limitless love out pouring from them. They remind me that they are dependant on me for their own happiness and well being. The strength that they recharge me with is incredible. My energy, my peace also feeds the souls of those that we have rescued. When once the rest of the world chose to forget about them we took them in. An incredible life is surrounded by love no matter if there are two legs or four. My sense of inner peace allows me to find safety in a stranger. My travelling solo abroad has taught me that. There is humility combined with humanity out there in the sweetest combination of the two. To be reminded that you can connect with another in mere minutes has brought me alot of peace.A promise of a wonderful life doesn’t guarantee you finite happiness. It is impossible to journey this life without a great degree of pain. We have all felt it and for some we have become incredible beacons of hope. I have the honour of saying I know some incredible humans that have been dealt the worst hand of cards. I mean for the average being they would have folded at the first opportunity. These humans have put their best stoic face on even after the world kicked them in the balls. Exscuse me for the reference but it is the only degree of pain I can imagine that they are going through. What life has dealt them and their continuous perserverance tells me that I have to go on. My pain that I have experienced was able to move through me. Like a tidal wave coming back to shore I know that my tide will eventually recede. The strength and courage that they have to get up and live day to day…well I know that I can conquer mine.A life most wonderful is about the people we meet and the life we get to experience together. Some experiences are meant to be so brief that you question if they even existed. In those beautiful moments when you were given a treasured gift hold on to them in your heart forever. Those memories and that love will never fade. Yes it has become dull over time because time has a habit of doing that. Time turns everything to dust as we will all come to know. But when we are finally released from these bodies that once held us back we will long for that opportunity to once again feel love and to hold another being in our arms. It has never been about holding our breath trying to prevent the perpetual push. It has always been about those moments that took our breaths away that help us to realize that it was in fact a wonderful life.