Quiet pauses

In the turmoil of the world around us, it is the quiet moments that define us. Those quiet pauses loom large and time seems to stop as heaven opens the windows of our soul and we can see beyond the moments that threaten to overwhelm and destroy us.

One of my favorite stories told at Christmas is the tale of how the words to the song, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” came to be written. It was 1863 and the War Between the States was still raging in America. The poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, whose wife had recently died, was now tending to the battle wounds his son had received during the Battle of Mine Run in November of that year. It was a very cold, dark December for Henry’s soul.

On Christmas Day, as he was sitting beside his son’s bed, he heard the bells of the local church in and his mind began to wander into thought, one of those quiet pauses of contemplation, a quiet pause that would soften and heal hearts for generations to come. He later wrote his feelings into a poem, which would one day become the words of a beloved Christmas song.

“I heard the bells on Christmas Day, Their old, familiar carols play; and wild and sweet, The words repeat Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

“And thought how, as the day had come, The belfries of all Christendom; Had rolled along, The unbroken song; Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

“Till ringing, singing on its way, The world revolved from night to day; A voice, a chime, A chant sublime; Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

“Then from each black, accursed mouth, The cannon thundered in the South; And with the sound, The carols drowned; Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

“It was as if an earthquake rent, The hearth-stones of a continent; And made forlorn, The households born; Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

“And in despair I bowed my head; ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said; ‘For hate is strong, And mocks the song; Of peace on earth, good-will to men!’

“Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: ‘God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; The Wrong shall fail, The Right prevail; With peace on earth, good-will to men.”

Years later, in another time, in another place, in another war, a group of battle-weary men would take their own quiet pause. Now known as the Christmas Truce, this extraordinary event happened during the midst of World War One, on Christmas Eve in 1914.

The German army was facing the British army in the frontline trenches of France. It was cold, wet, and foggy. The British noticed small lights scattered about among the German troops. The German Army had send their soldiers small Christmas trees and candles. The British soldiers had received small brass boxes with candy or tobacco. Someone with a German accent called out in English, “If you don’t shoot after midnight, we won’t.”

The pause began with a song as the familiar melody of Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht (Silent Night, Holy Night) hauntingly floated through the misty air between the trenches, first in German, then in English.

“Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright; 'Round yon Virgin Mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace.

“Silent night, holy night. Shepherds quake at the sight; Glories stream from heaven afar, Heavenly hosts sing, "Alleluia", Christ the Savior is born.

“Silent night, holy night. Son of God, love's pure light; Radiant beams from Thy holy face, With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord at Thy birth.”

And then they did what all of God’s children do at Christmas, they made peace with one another, exchanged gifts, sang songs together, and as rumor has it, a spontaneous soccer game was played.

These men didn’t change history, they couldn’t stop the juggernaut of a war that would nearly destroy Europe, they couldn’t change the future. But they did show that the common man, when left to himself untethered by political machinations and troubles of the ruling class, more often than not, in the quiet pause of his or her heart, will find the common ground and reach out with compassion to their fellow travelers.

Both of these Quiet Pauses teach me two principles. First, “Be Still and know that [He] is God” (Psalm 46:10).

Second, putting Matthew 25: 40 into action by providing food and drink to those who hunger and thirst, to welcome strangers, to donate clothing, to tend to the sick, to comfort those trapped in prisons of mind, body, and crime. “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Karen is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints experiencing life as a wife, mother, grandmother, family historian, writer, and political activist.