Even though it is not yet December, I am thinking a lot about Christmas. I’m determined to get organised this year. I don’t really like the shopping or the busyness. The “tone” of the mall is utterly depressing. Usually the only thing I like to do that’s connected with Christmas is write the Christmas letter and do Christmas cards. I know most people hate this but I totally dig it. And I love getting Christmas cards. It makes me sad that so few people do it any longer. I think that these types of small traditions are so important (why? I couldn’t tell you….) and meaningful. It kind of bugs me when people don’t send out cards or photos. Not quite as much as it bugs me when I don’t get a thank you note though, mind you (and I don’t count email). For some reason, to me, there is something sacred about pen to paper and a stamp. I love the tangibility of it. And it’s just once a year, as the rest of the time I email and Facebook-it with the best of’em. So send me a card. LOL
We are going to try to decorate the condo this weekend. Shouldn’t take too long to decorate 850 sq feet. I’ll have to find a skinny little tree that I can stuff in a corner as we simply don’t have room for it. But I won’t be denied. A tree we must have!
And then we’re going to start our Christmas shopping early. We are going to Omaha this year and so will have the Styles Christmas a week or two earlier. So I’ve got to be on my game.
We’ve also been having the big “to Santa or not to Santa” discussion. I’m a big fan of Santa but Brian wasn’t too sure. He didn’t like the idea of anything “taking away” from the significance of the Christian holiday. But I think I convinced him when I told him we’d just tell Anne that Santa loves Jesus and that’s why he gives gifts. LOL I love make-believe and think that children only have their passport to fairyland for such a short period of time. Let them pretend. So we’ll have a few items under the tree from Santa this year. I can give in on Halloween but I’ll hang in there for Santa and the Easter Bunny.
There are other things that we do to try to keep the focus off of just crass commercialism gifts at Christmas. We have a book of Advent that we read every night in December to prepare our hearts for the celebration. We give money to homeless shelters. We get together with friends. We get together with family. We open up our home. We donate gifts to ministries that work with the homeless or orphans in Africa. We take time to write to friends. We light candles and pray. We read the Christmas story on Christmas morning before opening gifts. We always go to church on Christmas Eve. It’s those small things that keep me sane throughout the chaos of the season.
We have had some snow over the past few days. It’s crisp outside and the sun starts to set at 3:30 in the afternoon. The longest night of the year is nearly upon us. I read in a magazine (can’t remember which one?) that there are some churches like the United Methodists that open up their church on 21 December (winter solstice) for Longest Night Services. It’s specifically for those people that are grieving due to death or divorce or loss over the holidays or simply don’t find a lot of joy or comfort during the season. It’s a night to remember, grieve, weep and then turn towards hope. They read Scripture, pray for each other, tell stories, read poems and sing songs. The significance of worshipping on the darkest and longest night of the year can symbolise ones own life: the turning from darkness to a gradually growing light. The transformation from despair to hope, from dark to light. I like this tradition and will hope to implement it when we are pastoring. To recognise and validate grief while turning towards hope as a community is a beautiful and powerful thing. I suppose it resonates with me because we have all, at one time or another, had our own “dark night of the soul” and learned (or not) to turn towards Hope and reach towards Light and be comforted in Love. The holidays with their overwhelming emphasis on commercialism and materialism can stampede over the truth of the fact that Scripture teaches us that “God sets the lonely in families”. And not the traditional family. But that as a community we wrap our arms around each other and hang on, even throughout the Longest Night.
