Dream, dream, dream, dre-ee-am…
My mind was again in its “normal” state of dreaminess as I walked towards the corner of Andok’s Chicken. I was deep into my mind’s terrain; just a jumble of thoughts. I’m usually in this state, by the way. If there was any way to describe me, it would be the “Belle” song from Beauty & the Beast. The one that has a line that goes, “…her head’s up on some cloud.” I‘m THE perfect target for snatchers and robbers. (Note: this statement has been proven, quadruple times!)

I woke up from my oblivion to notice the lady ahead of me. She was carrying a baby and a little chikiting was trailing behind her.

A parked car had suddenly backed up; knowing what would happen it took me just a second to step right behind the car. The little boy had held up his hand to stop the car but being so little, obviously the driver didn’t see him. I had just stopped the car from squishing the mother’s precious son. Boy, was I glad that I was there at the right time! I shivered at the thought of what might have happened to that little boy or the thought of what kind of reality his mother would have had to face.

We all meet with reality in our lifetime.

Some just earlier than most...like that young boy I always see alongside our street, cleaning cars and playing with rocks for toys...or the 6 year-old girl who lost both parents in a tragic car crash...or how about the countless nameless and faceless teens who survived being sexually harassed by fathers and relatives...


Some people--myself included--meet reality at a much later date...the 86 year-old wife reeling from the loss of not just a husband but of a partner and friend...that mother experiencing the pain of losing a child...that hurt that strikes all of us when relationships turn sour...

They all meet with the reality that life is not about to be fair, and life on earth is going to be full of pain and disappointments. But wait! This is not the end of my essay!

Somehow, the thought of that little boy behind the car allowed me to meet and face with the reality of life. (Remember, I'm someone who usually looks at the whole world with foggy, rose-colored glasses.) Something just seemed to click into place inside the mumbo-jumbo of my mind. But more that anything I'm glad that I met first with the other side of reality--the reality of the Christmas story and that Christmas baby. Because it’s not just an annual reality during Decembers, but an everyday reality of God’s love that authored the greatest love story ever told.
Christmas is there so that we will meet with that greater reality of love. And the New Year is here so that after having met with that reality, we will long for others who've met with the reality of life to also keep a date with the reality of God's love.

Whether you're appointment with life's reality is early or late, you've got a more important appointment to keep. Don't miss it!