Christmas preparations

Advent #2: Two Lit Candles

/ nagneberg48 / 2 Comments

December 12, 2023

My Advent companion this year is one of the Wise Men. Each of the other two companions have been my companions in recent years, thanks to the deck of cards, “Advent Perspectives, Companions for the Journey.” (See my December 5 post,https://livingonlifeslabyrinth.com/2023/12/05/advent-1-one-lit-candle/

This particular Wise Man (Woman, please) is having a hard time getting ready for the journey.

I keep thinking about the conversation these three wise people must be having.

Wise Person #1: “There’s this star, and I think we must follow it.”

Wise Person #2: “I’ve seen it, too, and it is so much brighter than all the other stars. That must be a sign.’

Wise Person #3 remains quiet.

#1: “I think we need to leave right away. Tomorrow, in fact.”

#2 “Sounds good to me. Let’s do it.”

#3 remains quiet, but as #1 and #2 get up from the breakfast table, #3 says, “I don’t think I can be ready that quickly. There’s a lot to do before we leave on a trip. And besides, where are we going and how long will we be gone and what about all the meetings and appointments we have–I have–in the coming weeks? Where will we be staying and what do we need to take with us? Are the camels ready for a long journey”

Both #1 and #2 assure #3 that all will be well and somehow everything gets done.

#3 under her breath says, “That’s because I do what needs to be done.” #1 and #2 pretend not to hear her, as they leave the room, and #3 begins creating a master TO DO List.

  • Cancel mail delivery.
  • Get out passports.
  • Hire neighbor to shovel snow.
  • Do laundry.
  • Empty refrigerator.
  • Cancel upcoming appointments.
  • Pay bills

#3 continues the ongoing dialogue in her head. “Why can’t I be as spontaneous and as trusting as my colleagues? I’ve seen the star, too, and I’ve had the same dreams about the need to follow that star, but I get so bogged down in my routines and wrapped up in my lists. How exhausting that is sometimes!”

#3 takes a deep breath, reminding herself to breathe in the love of God and breathe out her anxieties and fears. Her need to be organized and in control. She closes her eyes, lightly, not tightly, and breathes in and out gently, finding her own rhythm. This is what she must do now, even before getting out the suitcases or making a list of what to take with her on this journey.

Breathe.

Be still.

Open to the Presence.

Trust. Surrender.

See the beauty of that star.

#3 could feel an eagerness arise within her. A yearning to follow, to discover where the star takes us.

And when she opened her eyes, she saw #1 and #2 standing beside her.

#1 said, “We are on this journey together.

#2 said, “Let’s help one another prepare.”

And #3 said, “May it be so.”


I look as far as I can into future days, weeks, months,
Desiring to see what is ahead and waiting for me.
But my vision is limited and clouded with desire.
I return to seeing only what is in this present moment.
I do not need to know that which is far beyond.
I have only to trust you to direct me, All-Seeing One....
            from Fragments of Your Ancient Name, 365 Glimpses of the Divine for Daily Meditation
            Joyce Rupp

An Invitation

What is getting in the way of your seeing and following the star? I would love to know.

NOTE:

I will publish my list of favorite nonfiction books read in 2023 on my Thursday, December 14 post.

Post-Thanksgiving/Pre-Advent: I’m Ready!

/ nagneberg48 / 9 Comments

November 28, 2023

I’m ready! That doesn’t mean I’m ready for Christmas to arrive. The wreath may be on the door, but that is a false illusion of readiness.

Nope, I’m ready for the time of preparation. I’m ready for the arrival of Advent.

I’m ready to get ready.

Advent Meditations

Over the years I’ve acquired many Advent devotional books and sometimes I have subscribed to online Advent retreats and daily devotions. Deciding which books and offerings will be my focus is a kind of meditation in itself. This year the winners are:

  • Haphazard by Starlight, A Poem a Day from Advent to Epiphany by Janet Morley. A friend gave me this book last year writing “Words to accompany you through the dark days into the light.” Many days during last year’s Advent were too dark for me to focus on this book. After a dear friend died on December 1, I spent much of my morning meditation time sitting quietly in the darkness, allowing myself to feel the fullness of that loss. At the same time I had a crummy cold most of Advent, which limited what I did. This year this book welcomes me. In her introduction Morley writes:

Poetry yields its multi-layered meanings only when the reader pays attention, and spends time reflecting on what may be a very few words. Intuition and a certain humility are needed along with a willingness to notice properly the detailed world the poem illuminates, and perhaps to be personally transformed by the resulting insights. As readers we have to bring some deep parts of ourselves into the process of interpretation; we have to surrender to the poem. At the same time, a poem doesn’t browbeat the reader: it intrigues, challenges and delights.

p. xii
  • Lighted Windows, An Advent Calendar for a World In Waiting by Margaret Silf. This month I’ve been slowly re-reading one of Silf’s other books, Wayfaring, A Gospel Journey into Life, and once again I have loved how Silf encourages an imaginative reading of Gospel stories. Who am I in the text? What does the text offer me in my life? Today. Now. Through her guidance, I always discover something new. I know this book will bring me new light:

The seasons of Advent and Christmas remind us that now is the time and ours is the place in which God is labouring to come to birth.

May your own Advent journey, and your life’s journey, be guided by unexpected lights along the roads that refuse to be extinguished. May it be accompanied by melodies celebrating that which has not yet arrived. And may we ourselves become bearer of a Spirit-kindled light in a world that longs, like never before, for hope and trust and a reason to believe in the best that humanity can become.

p. 7

Once again, as I have done for several years, I will shuffle the deck of cards created by Tracy Mooty, Janet Hagberg and Ali Boone, “Advent Perspectives, Companions for the Journey.” I will close my eyes as one hand hovers over the cards finally landing on the character from the Nativity story who is to be my companion for the season. Mary was my companion last year and also in 2018. Who will it be this year? Stay tuned. I will let you know.

I am ready for my morning Advent meditation time.

Advent Remembrance

The day after Carolyn died I wrote in my journal:

Her friendship at this stage of my life was one of those unexpected surprises–like sometimes you open the front door to get the mail or sweep the steps, and there is an Amazon box there. You hadn’t ordered anything, but there it is. A friend had sent you a book, perhaps. One she knew you would love. Well, in her infinite generosity, God sent me Carolyn.

Bruce said yesterday that he feels empty. I don’t feel that. Actually, I feel quite full–not in the sense of being overwhelmed, but more in the sense of feeling gratitude for her presence in my life. One more example of enduring love and friendship and what it means to live fully, passionately, openly. But oh, I will miss her.

December 2, 2022

I am ready to sit quietly and ponder in my heart the ongoing gifts of Carolyn’s friendship in my life.

Advent Transformations

Our home is my easel, and each season is a source and setting for creativity.

At the end of the week I will remove all evidence of fall.

This Advent and Christmas some things will stay the same as they have in past years.

(2022)

But who knows where others will land.

(2022)

I am ready for the Christmas bins to come out of the storage room and to create this year’s setting for these precious days of Advent and Christmas. I’ll let you know what happens.

I am ready to get ready.

An Invitation

What are you ready for? I would love to know.

Advent #4: Cold Days Before Christmas

/ nagneberg48 / 10 Comments

December 20, 2022

By “cold,” I don’t only mean the temperature, which will soon be below zero, but also the lingering cold I have been fighting for two weeks. No, it isn’t COVID, and I am grateful for that, but who needs to be less than at top form on these days approaching Christmas. Besides, I love the Advent season –both the waiting and the preparing–and this limited energy is frustrating.

I have cancelled appointments and missed some special events, but I am keeping the prize in mind –Christmas with our family. Therefore, I’ve gone to bed early, slept later than normal, and napped when I felt the need. I’ve wrapped myself in a shawl and sipped hot cider flavored with a slice of dehydrated orange, and read more books than normal for December.

I have baked only a few loaves of cherry walnut bread and have not made any cookies. Sigh! However, missing those good smells, I made a simple simmering potpourri, which fills the house with the scent of comfort and welcome. My husband has done most of the wrapping (Bless him!) and I did the bows, and the presents are all in place.

Every Christmas is different and no one year is apt to be exactly the way you envision. Some years will be remembered more than others. I doubt any of us will forget last year when we spent Christmas Day on the patio because our grandson had COVID. He sat by the kitchen window, and we were able to watch him open his presents. Or there was the year when our granddaughter, who is now a sophomore in college, was only six weeks old, having arrived five weeks early. We all knew that would be my mother’s last Christmas, and it was.

We try to make each celebration perfect, but perfection comes when we accept and rejoice in what is. When we start from a place of gratitude and open our hearts to the love that is present, to all the ways we are held and beloved. When we remember that our task is not to fix the perfect meal or try to find the best present, but rather to live in the light of who we have been created to be.

I admit I hope to leave this cold behind by December 24 –preferably before then–but whatever happens, I know I will feel the warmth of those I love and who love me.

May these be days of warmth in your life.

An Invitation

Do you recall any Christmases that didn’t quite turn out as planned? I would love to know.

NOTE: Ingredients for Simmering Potpourri

Fresh or frozen cranberries
Orange slice
Fresh rosemary
Whole Star anise
Whole cloves
Whole allspice
Cinnamon sticks

Add 2-4 cups of water or apple juice. Simmer on the stove. Add more liquid as needed.