Klamath Writers' Guild

I would like to send each of you a Christmas card with some meaningful message or a gift that will put the true spirit of Christmas into your hearts. The older we become, the more tiresome becomes the Christmas season and the less enjoyable it seems. At least that is how I feel about what has happened over the years. Commercialism has driven Christmas totally off its mark, and I long for the feelings of yesteryear. However, just what IS this spirit we all long for so much? It centers upon Christ and His gift to all humanity, and what better gift can I give than to alert you to one of these gifts? Christmas is a time for giving, and that precisely is something I would like to give to you.

In the Book of Matthew, the Sermon on the Mount to be exact, Christ told the multitudes that if someone forces you to walk a mile with him, walk two. In those days, the Roman legions made anyone available carry their gear for a distance of a mile, and then they would get another victim. If the carrier volunteered to walk with him an additional mile, something miraculous may happen. Walking that second mile cheerfully with anyone is my gift to you this Christmas, and I will tell you why.

The other day I wrote something in my journal about walking the second mile, and I tried to explain why this is such a valuable philosophy to put into action. I explained the details of how it worked and how much the Israelites felt put upon by having to do it. The soldiers forced them to walk with them for a mile through wild territory. Instead of begrudging the task, Christ advised that we should walk cheerfully with them for an additional mile. As the two walked along this additional mile, the soldier started thinking, “This fellow is different. I would like to know him better. He could become a real friend in this territory.” Indeed, the servant, now instead of being a slave is a friend in the making!

A friend in the making! Wow! What a thought. In this world where we live by stopwatches and letters of the contract, it is so refreshing to find someone who is more than willing to do something for us without his hand out for a tip or compensation. That is precisely the ingredient we look for when we catalog people either as friends or as ‘others.’ It costs so little to do a little extra for people (and do it without ever thinking of a reward!). Do it just because it will make you feel good, just because you did it that way. You don’t believe it?

Think for a moment, think of those who you have considered as true friends. Did they not do something for you that they did not expect you to reward them? They enjoyed doing it for you. The shoe fits on the other foot as well. If someone does us a favor, we like to repay it in some way. Now this may not work every time. The world is made up of both givers and takers. Takers always take but seldom give. You run into them every day, but that should not deter your giving philosophy. Not every seed we plant, germinates into fruition, however, try this second mile philosophy. I am sure you will reap rewards you never expected to receive. That is my Christmas gift to you. Wear it wisely and often.