I love Christmas: the music, decorations, picking out the perfect gift, gathering with family, worshipping, receiving a thoughtful present, eating my mother-in-laws Christmas cookies, and of course finishing the Advent calendar. It is a time of year that our blessings are incredibly close and visual. We live in them for a month and it feels good.
Until that comfort that traditions provide begin to feel heavy. For me that happens right around December 27th. I knew it when we attended church on the First Sunday of Christmas and sung old hymns celebrating Emanuel, and it felt like an over played tune. Many of the songs were the same that were sung by a packed sanctuary just four days earlier. It’s amazing how quickly the build up can fade and we can turn our focus towards reclaiming space in our home and time on our calendar.
As I took down the tree and decorations this year I contemplated how quickly our family transitioned from anticipation to routine living. Last week at this time, our house was ROCKIN’. The elation of the coming Christmas was more then anyone could handle. There were plans, food, fun, melt downs, sugar and something beyond excitement. Today, the kids are quietly playing in their respective rooms enjoying space. I’m able to type in the middle of the day with all three children home. It’s a little jarring how quickly and all-encompassing this shift occurred.
The build up and diffusion makes me think of another Christ story. The events of Holy week are hitting me a new way today. While our family hasn’t turned into a riotous mob, the climate is totally different then last week. The parallel of anticipation, excitement and joy with the following week of irritation, normal and anger is hitting close to home. The human condition crosses cultures, time periods and faiths, and understanding that again and again is such an amazing gift.
We certainly can’t live in the heightened excitement of Advent for the whole year. We would run ourselves ragged, and there are so many good and important things that come from understanding “normal” and stability in the home. But maybe we can live with the awareness of how fleeting and unreliable our emotions are. When frustrated with our kids, spouse, family or friends maybe we could remember how quickly the entire climate of our lives can change in just a week. This seems like a tangible way to make Christmas a part of my everyday.