As I've mentioned (many times) in previous posts, I love words. I love the sounds of them. I love the inter-play of them when they work together. I love the beauty of them.
I also love the way words can mimic each other. Do you like homonyms (words that sound like each other but are spelled differently and mean different things)?
One such pair is presents and presence.
At Christmas time, we think a great deal about presents. Who does not get caught up in choosing, affording, and giving presents? But what about giving presence?
Does my presence at church mean something? Does my presence at a school ceremony awarding a grandchild a certificate of achievement mean something? Does my presence visiting a friend who is lonely mean something? I like to think so.
Sometimes it is easier to give presents than presence. When my children were growing up, they had my presence at home. They did not receive elaborate presents, though. I don't know what difference, if any, that made to them. I do know, however, that it made a difference to me.
So, for today, I am grateful for presence.
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