Living now through the holidays

My dear friends, we love you so very much,

Your time on this earth, no matter how long, is short in the larger scheme of eternity. It is precious time. There is so much love to be enjoyed while you are here. And whether you enter this holiday season with wonderful traditions to celebrate, or with a heart heavy from loss, you can find love when you look for it in the here and now.

If you are celebrating a season of tradition, it is useful to ask yourself if those traditions still bring you joy today. If so, embrace them wholeheartedly. Pass them on. Share them. They may be as alive and relevant now as they were long ago. For others, traditions have become items to check off the “to-do” list. In that case, consider making new traditions or gently letting the old ones go. What matters, dear ones, is not recreating what you loved in the past, but discovering where love flows most easily in your present day.

For those of you who have lost your dear ones, it becomes especially important to seek the love available here and now. Your loved ones are not suffering. They are not upset. They feel love beyond compare. No matter what they went through on earth, or what they put you through, they now see with expanded clarity. If you want to connect with them, remember: you won’t feel them exactly as they were, but rather as they are.

It may take time to set aside all you know about who they were, and quietly ask to feel them as they are in their new reality. But if you surrender even a little, you may be overwhelmed by the love they now feel for you in heaven, regardless of how they behaved on earth. Their core personality is intact, but their troubles are gone, their resistance dissolved, and they no longer hold back their love. Sit with them daily, and eventually you will melt into the embrace of their expanded spirit. You need not try to feel them. Instead, surrender. Let your heart’s desire call them, and breathe. They will feel your invitation, and as you relax, you’ll feel their love.

Whether you are celebrating or grieving, love—like sunshine—is ever-present, ever-shining, always waiting for you to open to its embrace. And you can open in the simplest ways.

For example, during your holiday shopping, you can pause and look at the people around you. Ponder the love beneath their presence. Perhaps they’re preparing a meal or a gift for someone dear. Perhaps they love their health or appearance and are shopping to support that. Perhaps they’re bored and seeking cheer. Even the impatient drivers honking in traffic love where they’re going, and love being on time so much that they forget their manners! You may not love their behavior, but you can still find something or someone to love anyway.

Pause often. Look for love where you can find it. It might be your cozy home, nature, your animals, or a kind stranger. It might be family, your favorite soft sweater, or a warm drink. It might be a chilly winter sunset or the song of a bird. It might be pausing in front of a photo of a departed loved one and remembering a moment that still warms your heart—at which point you may just feel them remembering the moment with you.

Then, dear ones, take a moment to acknowledge your love. You are here creating peace and balance in your daily lives. You are a blessing to many. You are a kind soul who cares about your well-being and the well-being of your world. You deserve your own love too. You are love.

So in this beautiful season of light, whether you are celebrating, grieving, or both, take the time to pause and tap into the love all around you. Savor the sights, sounds, smells, textures, and small sweetnesses of the season.

Every moment of life is precious, and every moment is ripe with love waiting to be seen. Don’t rush through your season of light, dear friends. Savor it. You deserve the love that is waiting to be seen.

God Bless You! We love you so very much.
— The Angels