Christ is born! Oh, come let us adore him!
On Christmas Eve, due to scheduling conflicts, we attended Mass at a local parish that we had not been to before. It was a lovely stone church very tastefully decorated with evergreen, pointsettias and twenty (!) Christmas trees adorned simply with white lights. It was just beautiful, and the beauty of it lifted my sagging spirits. It had been a difficult Advent for me, and as Christmas approached, I was having a difficult time summoning up any joy....peace was waaay beyond my reach. The busy-ness of my life these days exhausts me. We have 3 boys playing basketball, so every afternoon or evening finds me in a gym. Teen son is taking driver's ed (4 days per week), College girl needs a ride to work, dentist appointments, haircuts, shopping, cooking, cleaning....it's been too much for me this Advent. I have not had quiet time with God or my family. I still have Christmas cookie dough in the fridge that never got baked into cookies! Our Jesse tree is incomplete and we are behind in our reading of
Jotham's Journey.
So,Christmas Eve found me feeling tired, overwhelmed, and quite discouraged. When will I get this Christmas thing right? Every year we try to simplify, yet there is always this last rush of craziness just before the Holy Day. The visions I have of the old-fashioned, family-oriented, Jesus-centered Christmas never materialize. I am finding, with a daughter in college, that I really want to establish some firm traditions within our family that our daughter can look forward to and want to bring her future family back to. Am I putting too much pressure on myself? Maybe. Probably.
OK, in fairness to myself, Jesus is always the focus of our Christmas celebrations, I just haven't spent much time alone with him and that is where I feel the void. We do have traditions that involve extended family, which is great, but the traditions within our nuclear family need to take shape.
So as I said, I was at Christmas Eve Mass, but not feeling much peace or joy.
Suddenly, my husband poked me with his elbow. I looked at the kids to see who was doing something they shouldn't, but they were all behaving; in fact, they were all quiet and focused on something. I turned to look and saw Santa Claus, yes, Santa Claus walking down the aisle of the church. I have to admit, my first thought was, "Oh, no, this isn't a funky, liberal parish is it?" (yeah, I know...."Judge not, that ye not be judged") Surprisingly, the children in the church, including my own, were NOT squealing with excitement and jumping around. They sat in hushed awe. Santa slowly made his way to the front of the church and knelt reverently before the manger. As St. Nick adored the One he served as bishop so many years ago, the proper "order" of Christmas was made visible, and the atmosphere in the church subtly shifted. After several minutes, Santa rose and with hands joined prayerfully before him, slowly and quietly left the church. No Ho, Ho, Ho's; no "Merry Christmas"; no waving at kids; no candy canes; no jolly old elf....just silent reverence. The gift of perspective was bestowed upon the worshippers.
My soul quieted. Mass began. A Christmas pageant was performed which was very sweet. The soul-stirring music was familiar--then I realized it was the same music played at Franciscan University--our daughter's college!
Then Fr. Peter began his homily. He spoke to the children but his words penetrated adult souls. He began with a grammar lesson (the homeschooling mom in me rejoiced!) Homonyms...two (or more) words that sound the same but have different meanings. He asked the kids for examples and much to my dismay, none of my children would raise their hands--even college girl who is quite familiar with homonyms! Anyway, the homonyms Fr. Peter wanted to talk about were
piece and
peace. He held three puzzle pieces in his hands. He first asked the children, "Why do we use lights to decorate for Christmas?" Then he added that if anyone said because of the winter solstice he would whack them on the back of their head because, "We don't celebrate pagan feasts here!" (No this is no funky, liberal parish!!) The children finally came up with the answer -- Jesus is the light of the world, and Father stuck one piece of the puzzle on a board. The second question, "Why do we use evergreens to decorate for Christmas?" The answer took a little longer, but in Fr. Peter's humorous way, he led the children to "because Jesus gave us the gift of Everlasting Life." Father fitted the second piece of puzzle on the board.
The third question was easy, but, again, none of my children would answer it, and 9 year old boy actually told me that I had never taught him any of those things!!! (he's either lying or not paying attention in class...either way, he's grounded!) Father Peter asked why we use stars in our decorating. Of course, that was easy...the Star of Bethlehem that led the wise m
en to Jesus. The third piece of the puzzle was fitted into place to reveal a picture of the baby Jesus.
Then Fr. Peter said, "Christmas can be a time when we feel like we are going to pieces." My ears perked up. He noted how the busy-ness, excitement, anticipation and preparation of the season can distract us and make us feel like we are falling to pieces, but Jesus always brings us peace.
A very simple message for children that pierced this adult's heart. It was nothing new or earth-shattering...it was a message that I was already familiar with, but had forgotten to practice. I had allowed the circumstances of my life to pull me away from Jesus, my peace. Placing Him first in my life and giving Him the time he deserves is the way to true peace. The Giver and Author of Time will bless us with more time when we put Him first--frantic schedules calm, stress melts, and peace reigns. I know this, but I had forgotten. I needed a gentle reminder from a devout Santa and a holy priest.
So, when we pulled out the advent wreath, Jesse Tree, nativity sets and Christmas picture books on Sunday, I decided to keep on going. You see, normally, I only put out Advent stuff at first and then 2 weeks later or so, I decorate the rest of the house. 
The younger kids were thrilled to see the house all Christmasy, and were so eager to help. My oldest daughter, who is extremely fond of keeping traditions exactly the same as they are "supposed" to be, looked askance at me, wondering what I was doing. She seemed to be pacified when I assured her the tree would go up at the "proper" time.
