I can now say with (almost) certainty- “I’ll be home for Christmas!” both Kuiper Christmas and actual Christmas, barring any unforeseen circumstances of course. It will involve lots of driving, and hoping for good weather but I will be there. Hurray!
I have been really worried about the long drive by myself, especially if the weather turns nasty- I have to drive through several snowbelt regions. To top it all off I had some recent issues with my car that had me rather anxious. But the weather report looks clear enough and my car was given a clean bill of health so now I am looking forward to good food, good fun and family!
Christmas is always an interesting time of year; so full of magic, and wonder, and excitement, and also so stressful in many ways. As people gather with their families to celebrate there is also the rush of shopping, and stress of preparing meals, and interesting family dynamics that emerge amongst family members that haven’t seen each other in awhile.
In my advent posts I haven’t been so good at following the traditional advent format (Peace, Hope, Joy, Love) but this post is about advent peace. Peace is sometimes hard to find at Christmas. Stores are busier, we are busier, and it is all too easy to forget about Peace. I frequently remember as a child my mother declaring that the only Christmas present she wanted was for us children to just get along for once. We hear about peace in Christmas songs, and read about peace in stories and on Christmas cards. But something about that version of peace is too syrupy sweet and unrealistic. It sounds nice in stories but in reality I think it might be a bit fake.
I remember one year I spent a lot of time and effort to cultivate that Christmas card-type “peace” in my family. I thought it meant evenings spent around a beautifully decorated tree, or advent wreath, singing songs, reading stories etc. My intentions were noble but the reality was much less idyllic. Siblings were grouchy, Christmas tree lights got tangled, and eyes strained trying to read stories by candlelight. The result brought a whole new meaning to when Jesus said he came, “ to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law…” (Matthew 10:35)
There is no magical formula for Christmas peace. But I have a feeling it might involve a bit of smiling through family photo shoots and settling for Chinese food instead of turkey.
Since Advent is also the time of anxious waiting for the (second) coming of Christ we can also anticipate the Peace that will come. For anyone who has read Revelations it is clear that kind of peace wouldn’t fit on a Christmas card either- plagues, wars, bloodshed, tears and violence abound but at the end there is a city, and a river and a tree whose leaves are for the healing of the nations, and there will no longer be any curse, and the Spirit and the Bride say “Come!”
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