Merry Christmas Everyone! Millions of people all over the world are celebrating Christmas this weekend. The one gift we want to offer everyone is something that cannot be bought—only shared. That wish is for peace.
And one of our favorite ways to share it is in the words of young Mattie Stepanek. Mattie as you may remember was a young man who died in 2004 at the age of 14. Mattie, who passed away from a rare genetic disease, managed to write six books of poetry in his young life and touched millions around the planet including Oprah Winfrey and his hero Jimmy Carter.
Mattie reminds us that even though our time on this planet is limited, we still have the ability to transform and touch others through everything we do. While Mattie isn’t around to celebrate this year, his words continue to inspire and bring peace to us all. Talk about sustainable! That’s certainly a SMART gift and one we wish to share with you.
December Prayer
No matter who you are,
say a prayer this season.
No matter what your faith,
say a prayer this season.
No matter how you celebrate,
say a prayer this season.
There are so many ways
to celebrate faiths.
There are so many faiths
to celebrate life.
No matter who,
no matter what,
no matter how…
you pray
let’s say a prayer this season,
together,
for peace.
– By Mattie Stepanek, 1999
“Nothing that I can do will change the structure of the universe. But maybe, by raising my voice I can help the greatest of all causes – goodwill among men and peace on earth.”–Albert Einstein
“Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas.” –Calvin Coolidge
I've been writing on all sorts of topics for over 25 years and have a couple of published books and hundreds of articles. But my passion today is exploring ideas and experiences that help to create a meaningful, sustainable, compassionate and rewarding life for myself and others. Beyond that, I am blessed to be healthy, content, and happily married to my best friend and soul mate--Thom! Plus, each day I'm doing my best to live life to Its fullest....and to remember, that I get to make it up! Check out my personal website for more info at: http://kathygottberg.com
Great site !thanks a lot Kathy.i appreciated all your articles .i ‘ye just come across this site and found it very inspiring .the poem is also great .we are all in need of these big hearts like this young one .universal peace is reallyrecommended in this gloomy world full of conflicts and struggles for biased conceptions. great work dear Kathy!
Thanks so much for dropping by and sharing words of encouragement! Yes Matty, certainly was a treasure and proof that we can all make big difference in a short amount of time if we put forth the effort. Glad you are joining us…please come back often and share you ideas!
My heart broke when Mattie died, he had so much loss in his young life but never lost his smile and good spirits. I have 3 of his books, and each brings tears to my eyes. I, having Muscular Dystrophy as well, know what he and his family went through having lost so many of my friends to this disorder. Thank you for sharing one of Mattie’s poems.
Hi Lois….and yes, Mattie was a gift to us all. Such a sweet and thoughtful young man…and as you said, he never lost his spirit. I think of him now and then and how even with a short life he was able to spread such a message of peace and goodwill. It is a good reminder for you and I, and everyone really, to do our best to share our Light with everyone we can while we can. Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones….Kathy