Mary Novaria

As seen in Feminine Collective simpleinsomnia  Flickr via  Compfight   cc I was 8 years old when I realized there was no Santa Claus. I’d lost the Snow White watch I’d received for Christmas—the one with the yellow leather band that came with a plastic figurine of my favorite Disney character. Sitting at breakfast some months later, I confessed the watch was missing. “We paid good money for that watch,” my father said. His face wore “the look”—the one that made it clear he was disgusted with my carelessness. “I thought Santa gave me the watch.” I was confused and my mother jumped in with a feeble attempt to preserve the myth. “Well, who do you think sends Santa the money?”  Read More...

The following piece of mine appeared in the Huffington Post Religion section on December 6, 2012 8:07 PM  –  12/ 6/2012 Preparing My Heart for the Birth of Christ -- An Advent Reflection I saw firsthand today the goodness in people, which tends to happen if I stop thinking about myself and pay attention. What I saw today was exactly what Jesus would have done and it helped me re-form my Advent intention. I was walking in the park with my dog, Bella, as we do most days. We passed an old man, sleeping in the grass, which isn’t unusual in our city, where there is a sizable population of homeless people. The man was roused by the beep-beep of a horn as an SUV pulled up along the curb by the park. The two people in the car beckoned the old man to come over. As he approached, the passenger reached out and handed him one of those white, Styrofoam carryout containers, a sizable one, perhaps the only meal the old man would have this day.  And then they drove off...