story by LAURA LINDBLOM myblackhillscountry . com
As the year wraps up and as the daylight hours dwindle , as the nights lengthen and the sunlight grows weaker , we gather ourselves in and gather ourselves together for a season of merrymaking , with all of its traditions and tastes and sights and sounds that bring us into a festive spirit .
Sadly , this season of wonderful merrymaking has lost its glow for many . Our cultural expressions in this season of the year obscure the true meaning and poignancy of this time . The beginning of November is a tipping point – Suddenly the year is almost over . Some shudder at the thought of winter being at our doorstep . Some of us are bracing for a calving season that isn ’ t too far away , and savoring the temporary slow-down , and maybe regretting how busy this time of year can be . Some roll their eyes at the wanton waste and foolishness of much of our festive cultural expressions . With Thanksgiving followed ironically and hotly by Black Friday and Cyber Monday , it is no wonder there is some weariness as the holidays collectively approach . Shopping malls are packed out like no other time of the year , and money that we don ’ t have is spent on gifts that have no meaning . Parties and festivities wear us out . Preparations drag us down .
The wanton lavishness of many highlights the bitter lack of others . Waste on the one hand highlights poverty on the other . Joy of some highlights the grief of others . Even our own joy can highlight our own grief , intermingled in our hearts . Our memories of good times are mingled with sadness at the empty places at our tables , at the missing ring of that certain laughter , the missing voice singing carols . Loneliness is the bitterest pill at this time of the year .
But all of those things are an argument to enter into this festive season with even more enthusiasm , even more sincerity , with eyes to see the One from Whom and to Whom this entire season is due . The older I get , the more I love the stretch of the calendar from Thanksgiving to Christmas to New Year ’ s , not for how our culture participates , not for the parties and the shopping and the frivolity , but because of the wonderful sense of gravity mingled with grace and joy . It is a time we have set aside culturally for the expression of thanks to our God before we enter into the Advent season , the glorious countdown to Christmas morning and our celebration of His entering into His Creation .
The older I get , the more it matters to me that I continue to express the traditions I grew up with , things that fostered a thorough experience of this whole season , from the songs to the foods to my cherished creches to the simple exchange of humble gifts , to the church services and the cutting of a Christmas tree . The older I get , the more the liturgical calendar speaks to me , the more the Advent season weighs joyfully on my heart . The older I get , the greater my desire to build traditions that my husband and I will pass down to our own children one day . It is a time of sweet nostalgia , vivid remembrances , joyfully looking back on traditions that are part of the fabric of our Christian culture and our families ’ cultures , and joyfully applying those traditions now .
We don ’ t know what next year will bring , so how good it is that we are invited into a time of holding one another close , of opening our hearts and our homes , of celebrating and remembering and thanking God for all His gifts , the ones we understand and the ones we don ’ t .
The time of thanksgiving after the season of harvest puts our hearts in line with what comes next , and if we cooperate , we are reminded of how little we need and how much we have . All the tastes and the smells and the sights and the sounds of the season invite us to enter into a spirit of joy and festivity , at the darkest time of the year . Simple traditions remind us of the past , of God ’ s enduring faithfulness over the decades and centuries , as so many observances and customs span generations and oceans and cultures . Traditions don ’ t have to clutter the landscape at this time of the year , they don ’ t have to add to the chaos . Instead , they can foster our heartfelt participation , and remind us of what is truly important .
Down Country Roads 21