Anthony J. Fisichella...
FROM TONY WITH LOVE
A CHRISTMAS GIFT FOR JEANNE-MARIE
Seated in the family playroom, relaxing, watching the evening news on television, I’m suddenly conscious of a noise in the doorway. Turning to ascertain the source, I’m confronted by a tiny creature, waddling into the room with a rather comical Charlie Chaplin gait. She staggers forward, her muscles and mind not yet totally integrated and coordinated, totters for a moment, trying ineffectively to retain her balance, and finally plops down upon her well-padded and diapered rump. All of which bring a smile to my face. There she sits, quizzically scanning the situation, puzzled and perplexed, uncertain whether to laugh or cry. She raises her head to see me seated there, smiling as I observed and enjoy this noble experiment in motor development. Her face breaks out in a wide grin. Her entire countenance seems to magically light up like a Christmas tree. She extends her tiny hands and arms in my direction, flexing her fingers, beckoning me. And in that moment it’s as though I had inserted my fingers in a light socket. Sparks fly, electricity flows, and a beautiful kind of warmth pervades my being. What special magic this creature wields!
This tiny little two-foot nothing toddler, a blond-haired, blue-eyed giant, in my eyes, whose very presence warms my heart, enriches my soul and enhances my entire being, is, if you haven’t already guessed, my daughter, Jeanne-Marie.
Unlike an adult, you can’t keep a child down, so up she gets to continue her exploration and experimentation. As I observe her undaunted efforts to get into everything and anything she discovers, I’m reminded of the injunction by Jesus, “Verily, I say unto you, except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.” Certainly, the same kind of searching curiosity and open-mindedness that a child displays, unconditioned and unbridled by bias, prejudice, and the pre-conceived notions that an adult has developed, is necessary for that spiritual growth which leads to the “Portal of Initiation,” and into the “Kingdom.” The flexibility, resiliency, and adaptability, when confronted by new experiences, as opposed to the crystallized mind, holding fast to past traditions and dogma. The loving innocence, the trust, and…..
Contemplating this idea, this seed thought as it were, I had briefly lost touch with objectivity and slipped off into a mild meditation, a sort of reverie, basking in the light of this pleasant experience. Suddenly, I’m jolted back to reality, my attention drawn by the glare of the newscast. The problems of humanity on parade. War, or threat of war, fear and suspicion, children being taught to fire machine-guns in self defense. Disease, pestilence, corruption, hunger and malnutrition, children with bloated bellies and deformed bodies. This last one hurt the most, as I peered down at Jeanne-Marie playing before me. What a nightmare I’m bestowing upon her and the other Jeanne-Maries of the world. What a legacy. Some already paying the unbelievable premium for ignorance, fear, hatred, and man’s inhumanity to man. Jeanne-Marie is one of the luckier ones, but what of the future? What does it hold in store for her and others like her? The boys and girls that will inherit this madness engaged in by supposedly adult humanity.
The Christmas scene is once again upon us. People scurrying to and fro, buying toys and other gifts for each other and their children. But, the greatest gift of all, the gift that Jesus personified, the only gift that can be given and yet retained, is so seldom given, and when given, usually with reservation. “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples that ye have LOVE one for the other.” Love, the gift that would revolutionize the world, that would transform this sphere of anguish and darkness into a radiant globe of light. The gift that would produce “The peace that passeth understanding,” that’s the gift I want of Jeanne-Marie. A sane, healthy, loving world wherein exists PEACE ON EARTH GOOD WILL AMONG MEN. Won’t you please join me in giving a Christmas gift to Jeanne-Marie, all the Jeanne-Maries of this planet, regardless of race, religion, color, creed or national origin? A gift of freedom from want and fear. A world wherein they shall daily eat their bread. An environment where each may interact with the other without prejudice and bigotry erecting barriers. Where each child can learn, expand and evolve those latent powers, those gifts of God within each, and fulfill their divine heritage. Where unity and synthesis are the keynotes of existence and divisiveness and separation no longer hold sway.
This, then, is the gift I vow to try and bestow upon my daughters and my sons, and your sons and daughters. Won’t you work with me and help me in this most important of all Christmas gifts to you children?
Anthony J. Fisichella
December 1975
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