A woman I have been driving to our Miracles group told me that, in the years preceding her daughter's death five years ago, her greatest treat during the holiday season was being taken to see Christmas displays. We went through residential neighborhoods on the way home, and one night I took her to the "Magical Forest" and to Hondo Court, the most extravagantly decorated area in town. She was thrilled, and I heard her softly say "Look, Joyce, we have never seen anything like this" to her departed daughter, and I knew she was in that "Holy Instant" of timelessness.

One night I took her to another neighborhood a friend had told me about. We found a brightly lit scene, beautifully done, with the entire yard covered with cotton "snow". My friend had described much more, and I felt we were not at the right place. I noticed another display across the street, and saw all of the items I had expected, and more. It was decorated to the hilt, including the roof. The entire yard was filled with displays, yet nothing moved, and the scene was dark. Though it was early, and only the second day after Christmas, there were no lights at the house but the light of the television in the living room.

When I called her attention to the dark scene, she was happy to see more, but wondered why the power wasn't turned on. After spending thousands of dollars and countless hours creating such a magnificent display, why wouldn't they turn on the power? It was as if all of the expense and time were wasted, when turning on the lights would have given such joy to those who cared to look.

It was then that the lesson appeared. Is that how we are in life? After the marvel of our creation, and spending our lives building the perfect display of Love, do we forget to turn on the power? Do we feel that no-one would be interested in the perfection we are, and therefore leave the power off and watch television while people are standing outside trying to see our beauty? Are we wasting all of the energy that has shaped our lives, hiding ourselves from the world?

And the thought of a children's song from Sunday school drifted across my mind... "don't hide your light under a bushel, let it shine, shine shine."