I once knew someone who spent a year in a plaster cast recovering from an operation on his back. He read a lot, and thought a lot, and felt miserable.
Later, he realised this time of forced retreat from the world had helped him to understand the world more clearly.
We all need to get the balance right between action and reflection. With so many distractions, it is easy to forget to pause and take stock. Be it through contemplation, prayer, or even keeping a diary, many have found the practice of quiet personal reflection surprisingly rewarding, even discovering greater spiritual depth to their lives.
Reflection can take many forms. When families and friends come together at Christmas, it's often a time for happy memories and reminiscing. Our thoughts are with those we have loved who are no longer with us. We also remember those who through doing their duty cannot be at home for Christmas, such as workers in essential or emergency services.
And especially at this time of year we think of the men and women serving overseas in our armed forces. We are forever grateful to all those who put themselves at risk to keep us safe.
Service and duty are not just the guiding principles of yesteryear; they have an enduring value which spans the generations.
I myself had cause to reflect this year, at Westminster Abbey, on my own pledge of service made in that great church on Coronation Day 60 years earlier.
The anniversary reminded me of the remarkable changes that have occurred since the Coronation, many of them for the better; and of the things that have remained constant, such as the importance of family, friendship and good neighbourliness.
But reflection is not just about looking back. I and many others are looking forward to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next year.
The baton relay left London in October and is now the other side of the world, on its way across 70 nations and territories before arriving in Scotland next summer. Its journey is a reminder that the Commonwealth can offer us a fresh view of life.
My son Charles summed this up at the recent meeting in Sri Lanka. He spoke of the Commonwealth's 'family ties' that are a source of encouragement to many. Like any family there can be differences of opinion. But however strongly they're expressed they are held within the common bond of friendship and shared experiences.
Here at home my own family is a little larger this Christmas.
As so many of you will know, the arrival of a baby gives everyone the chance to contemplate the future with renewed happiness and hope. For the new parents, life will never be quite the same again.
As with all who are christened, George was baptised into a joyful faith of Christian duty and service. After the christening, we gathered for the traditional photograph.
It was a happy occasion, bringing together four generations.
In the year ahead, I hope you will have time to pause for moments of quiet reflection. As the man in the plaster cast discovered, the results can sometimes be surprising.
For Christians, as for all people of faith, reflection, meditation and prayer help us to renew ourselves in God's love, as we strive daily to become better people. The Christmas message shows us that this love is for everyone. There is no one beyond its reach.
On the first Christmas, in the fields above Bethlehem, as they sat in the cold of night watching their resting sheep, the local shepherds must have had no shortage of time for reflection. Suddenly all this was to change. These humble shepherds were the first to hear and ponder the wondrous news of the birth of Christ – the first noel – the joy of which we celebrate today.
I wish you all a very happy Christmas.
1、如果不是為了讓世界變得更美好，那金錢究竟是為什么存在的?
2、不要讓自己越過自己的情感、心理等去進行一些無所謂的胡思亂想。
3、成功是一種了不起的除臭劑。它能帶走所有你過去的味道。
4、關鍵不在于擁有，而在于得到的過程。
5、媽媽說，我出生后8天沒有睜眼。而當我一睜開我看到的是一枚訂婚戒指。我是被迷住了。
6、現(xiàn)在對我來說，表演是假的?？慈藗冊馐芡纯嗍钦鎸嵉?。沒有比這個再真實的.了。有些人不喜歡面對這些，因為太令人痛苦了。但是如果沒人正視它的話，一切都不會發(fā)生改變。
7、我想當他們到了一定的年齡，有些人害怕長大，似乎男人年齡越來越大，他們的妻子會越來越年輕。
8、我喜歡佩戴珠寶，但并不是因為它們屬于我。你無法擁有光彩，你只能贊美它。
9、你就是你。在這個世界上你所能做的就是去盡可能的幫助他人，讓他們實現(xiàn)自己的夢想，再去進一步幫助他人。
10、我不會假裝是個平凡的家庭主婦。
11、除非我死了，我以我自己的方式將會一直去享受生活的無盡樂趣。祝各位愉快!
12、婚姻是一所好大學。
13、我想在我的甜蜜心靈中增加一些美好的東西。請永遠讓愛和人道主意常駐你心。
14、我非常喜歡冒險，世界上有許多門都是開著的，我不怕看到門背后的東西。
15、我擁有一個女人的身體和一個孩子的情感。
16、我一生愛過7個男人，有過八次婚姻。上帝給了我美貌、聲名、成功和財富，所以沒有給我幸福。
17、我料想在到達一定年齡之后，有些男人就害怕成長了，似乎男人們年紀越大，他們的妻子就越年輕。
In this past year my family and I have been inspired by the courage and hope we have seen in so many ways in Britain, in the Commonwealth and around the world. Weve seen that its in hardship that we often find strength from our families; its in adversity that new friendships are sometimes formed; and its in a crisis that communities break down barriers and bind together to help one another.
Families, friends and communities often find a source of courage rising up from within. Indeed, sadly, it seems that it is tragedy that often draws out the most and the best from the human spirit.
When Prince Philip and I visited Australia this year we saw for ourselves the effects of natural disaster in some of the areas devastated by floods, where in January so many people lost their lives and their livelihoods. We were moved by the way families and local communities held together to support each other.
Prince William travelled to New Zealand and Australia in the aftermath of earthquakes, cyclones and floods and saw how communities rose up to rescue the injured, comfort the bereaved and rebuild the cities and towns devastated by nature.
The Prince of Wales also saw first hand the remarkable resilience of the human spirit after tragedy struck in a Welsh mining community, and how communities can work together to support their neighbors.
This past year has also seen some memorable and historic visits – to Ireland and from America.
The spirit of friendship so evident in both these nations can fill us all with hope. Relationships that years ago were once so strained have through sorrow and forgiveness blossomed into long term friendship. It is through this lens of history that we should view the conflicts of today, and so give us hope for tomorrow.
Of course, family does not necessarily mean blood relatives but often a description of a community, organization or nation. The Commonwealth is a family of 53 nations, all with a common bond, shared beliefs, mutual values and goals.
It is this which makes the Commonwealth a family of people in the truest sense, at ease with each other, enjoying its shared history and ready and willing to support its members in the direst of circumstances. They have always looked to the future, with a sense of camaraderie, warmth and mutual respect while still maintaining their individualism.
The importance of family has, of course, come home to Prince Philip and me personally this year with the marriages of two of our grandchildren, each in their own way a celebration of the God-given love that binds a family together.
For many this Christmas will not be easy. With our armed forces deployed around the world, thousands of service families face Christmas without their loved ones at home. The bereaved and the lonely will find it especially hard. And, as we all know, the world is going through difficult times. All this will affect our celebration of this great Christian festival.
Finding hope in adversity is one of the themes of Christmas. Jesus was born into a world full of fear. The angels came to frightened shepherds with hope in their voices: Fear not, they urged, we bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour who is Christ the Lord.
Although we are capable of great acts of kindness, history teaches us that we sometimes need saving from ourselves – from our recklessness or our greed. God sent into the world a unique person – neither a philosopher nor a general (important though they are) – but a Saviour, with the power to forgive.
Forgiveness lies at the heart of the Christian faith. It can heal broken families, it can restore friendships and it can reconcile divided communities. It is in forgiveness that we feel the power of Gods love.
In the last verse of this beautiful carol, O Little Town of Bethlehem, theres a prayer:
O Holy Child of Bethlehem
Descend to us we pray
Cast out our sin
And enter in
Be born in us today
It is my prayer that on this Christmas day we might all find room in our lives for the message of the angels and for the love of God through Christ our Lord.
I wish you all a very happy Christmas.
