12 Days of Yule - Day 7

7th Day of Yule – Remembering the Noble Virtue of Hospitality
December 26th

"Welcome those into your house and your life as you can. In today’s world, we cannot trust everyone with whom we come in contact, but we can exercise caution and be as welcoming as possible. Similarly, be a proper and respectful guest when you are welcomed."

With most of my family up in Canada, a niece down in Florida, and one of my sisters on her way to Africa, I don't get to spend as much time with them as I would like. But they all know that my door is open to them at any time.

It seems that with my friends too, most of our time spent together is in eating out at a restaurant, taking in a movie, or hanging out at Barnes and Noble. It seems to me that the fine art of entertaining or 'hospitality' is just that . . . a fine art like that you'd see hanging in a museum.

With people spending so much time at work, running around doing errands, or grocery shopping, it can feel that when one gets home it's time to kick off the shoes, brew a cup of tea and just relax by a warm fire. It can sometimes seem that the mere thought of hospitality is enough to exhaust even the most stoic of us.

In the end though, when one does make the effort to invite a few family or friends over, the feelings of connection and being linked in to the world can be a pretty good tonic. Here's a toast to all of you who make the effort and to those of you who enjoy those efforts!