In the Bleak Midwinter

As I sit in my office this morning, I look out the window and see a pretty bleak picture.

Now it's beautiful, sure. Lots of trees, a guy walking a dog, a well-maintained street.
But the sky is gloomy. It's almost as if fog is trying to take over . . . but something will not quite let it.

That's Houston, in January. It's about as gloomy as it gets here. The high will be 80 today. Not exactly a chill in the air. But still, it's winter.

As I look out the window, I am reminded that we all have seasons of winter in our lives, seasons of a pretty bleak picture. Times when fog is trying to take over. What sustains us during those times? What gets us through?

The song, "In the Bleak Midwinter" comes over my mind as I sit here this morning. I honestly don't know much about the song. I know that we used to sing it in a former church, in a place where winter really would hit and there would be, from time to time, a biting chill in the air. And I know I always enjoyed singing it and listening to it.

The song is beautiful, peaceful, calming. If you have never heard it, I found this link of a choir singing it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRobryliBLQ

The song ends by saying that the only gift that we can give to the Christ-child is ourselves. As such, it's a beautiful Advent song. The song is also a wonderful reminder, regardless of the season of the year, that during times when we feel a bit bleak, a little down, a little out . . . when we feel that we do not have anything to offer the world that we are a part of, our gift can be ourselves:

What can I give him, poor as I am? 
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb; 
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part; 
Yet what I can I give him: give my heart.

And so it is, with us, everyday. We may not feel that we have much to offer to others, to the world. We may not have the riches of our neighbor. We may not have the gifts or talents of a friend. But we have ourselves. And we are, each of us, created wonderfully and uniquely to be . . . ourselves.

So today, be you. I promise that will be more than enough for the people around you . . . and for yourself.