A Christmas message from Master
Instructor Don Harradine
I am sure that like me you always have a
love/hate relationship with the Christmas season: parties;
presents; old friends visiting; good food; expense; relatives;
lots of jobs that need to be done; etc etc. Well I suspect you
can work-out which you love of these things and which you hate
or perhaps some of them you are just are not sure which category
they fit into. Most of us would agree that whatever the
drawbacks Christmas is a very good thing and what really
distinguishes it from other holidays and festivals is that we
are encouraged to give in many different ways and that this act
helps us to be better people, whatever may be our belief system.
The arts we study are in many important aspects just like
Christmas: we receive many fantastic gifts, but we must never
forget that the biggest lesson of our arts is that we understand
that giving is a big part of the learning process. We need to
give to progress. We need to give: time, commitment; energy;
sensitivity; our intellectual abilities; to follow others; to
invest in loss; love and respect to our friends, brothers and
sisters; attention to new ideas; to new philosophies; and our
gratitude for what we have been taught. You probably can add
considerably to this list. Without giving we only get a small
part of what Christmas can offer and I suggest that this is even
more so with regard the study of our arts.
So I guess that I should give something! - So I raise my
sherry glass and give a toast - Have a very merry Christmas and
may 2009 be a year of progress, happiness and giving.