The Greatest of Gifts

by Joseph Williams




The Greatest of Gifts cannot be purchased;
it cannot be borrowed;
it cannot stolen; it can only be given away.
And once it is given, its value exceeds
any monetary merit that could ever be assigned to it.

The greatest gift can easily
be hidden away and selfishly hoarded,
but when this happens the natural order of things
seems to work against itself.
When hidden or hoarded
the gift becomes dusty and
often appears contorted and vexatious.
The person hiding and hoarding
the gift begins to suffer.
The world becomes the worst of life's paradoxes.
- close, but yet unattainable;
- far, so far the journey seems meaningless;
- bright, so bright the glare prevents seeing beyond;
- dark, so dark nothing can be seen.
Worthiness turns to worthlessness.

Alone turns to loneliness.
The amazing thing is the gift can be dusted off
and polished to a brilliant shine.
Producing a shine that reflects
the beauty of life's paradoxes.
The gift, then and only then, can be given freely,
providing the giver the insights
to the value of the pains and joys of life.
At the same time the gift provides
the receiver with like results.
The gift reverberates and multiplies.
The gift becomes alive and real
and something that is shared.

But none of this is possible
until that first person is willing to give
the greatest of all gifts to someone else.
Thank you for giving your gift
- the Greatest of All Gifts -
the love of the God within.



Copyright © 1996 Joseph E. Williams