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6. Jonathan Livingston Seagull pointed out that every negative thought becomes an energetic chain around our necks and part of who we are. To break chain, join a happy flock of seagulls at a church or spiritual study group with a clear focus on "reason for season." AA and NA groups also celebrate holidays with personal and spiritual clarity.
7. The bright red cardinal cheers everyone with his color and verve. Be a light unto world and you will attract light to yourself as well.
8. Love little chickadees running and shrieking with holiday abandon. This is easier to appreciate if you sit on Santa's lap and pull his/her beard. Empathy opens to love for these little birds, who are typically small, busy and cute.
9. Shy away like a tender sparrow from family gossip. Your quick, bright optimism will shift conversation to happier themes and teach your children well.
10. The four-and-twenty blackbirds sang when pie was opened--not when cook put them in it! Sweets and overeating are customary, but too much of a good thing is not a good thing. Be in your body, with every bite, and put down your fork when it's time to do so. Eat healthy and well!
11. When people are clucking like chickens about state of world, don't embroil yourself in barnyard pecking. Walk between positive and negative worlds of duality by being rooster crowing at dawn of awakening on our planet. It is as real as you make it.
12. The dove of peace is only a meditation away, especially as year comes to a close. Remember to spend quiet time reviewing events of 2003 and to set your intentions for 2004, in order to materialize what you want and need to feel happy, whole and free (which, technically, you already are). It's not just Nov. 8-23 Harmonic Concordance that brings us to light, it's also new birth celebrated at Christmastime and on December 31. May you soar on golden wings of light through this and every year!
Judith Pennington, a scientific mystic living in the hills of Bethelehem, Pa., is a writer, workshop leader and author of The Voice of the Soul, a trail-blazing search for truth and meaning that revolutionizes the way we perceive the soul and consciousness. She publishes a free monthly e-newsletter, "The Still, Small Voice," and a subscription e-zine, "OneWorld," from her website, www.eaglelife.com.