The Work of Christmas: a post from my father to carry us to the Epiphany

I save posts about the blog in a special Outlook Blog inbox. I was looking to make sure I'd included everyone's posts for this year and noticed this one from my Dad. Somehow I managed to overlook it before, probably because it was dated January 13 of last year...

That was the day before my Dad was diagnosed with stage IV cancer. The day before our worlds were rocked. The day before the beginning of the end, as he was very sick and died on May 6.

But you know, this poem is so gloriously the story of my Dad and all of his quiet, behind-the-scenes works of charity and mercy. And this is so absolutely the entire reason why Christmas doesn't end on December 25.

Here is the email, in its blessed, sweet entirety.

Meggie,
I thought you'd like this prayer that Gini gave us at our last St. Vincent DePaul meeting.
Love, pOpS (yep, he copied my mEg, it was so cute!)

THE WORK OF CHRISTMAS
When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.
-- Dr. Howard Thurman

Like a voice and a gift from heaven, the great teacher still teaches... I miss you Dad!

Merry Christmas, Blessed New Year and Happy Ephiphany everyone. With my love, mEg

Looking for a forever family....

Hallelujah Christmas

This is a familiar song with new lyrics for Christmas, beautiful! Thanks Anne....

Lonely for Christmas

From my husband's aunt, Zizi Joann:

Sobering thoughts as we enter the holiday season...It is important to remember that not everyone is surrounded by large wonderful families. Some of us have problems during the holidays and sometimes are overcome with great sadness when we remember the loved ones who are not with us. And, many people have no one to spend these times with and are besieged by loneliness. We all need caring, loving thoughts right now. May I ask my friend/s, wherever you might be, to give a moment of support to all those who have family problems, health struggles, job issues, worries of any kind and just need to know that someone cares. Do it for all of us, for nobody is immune.

A prayer for those in need this Christmas:
“Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this life, in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; So that, at the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal.” The Book of Common Prayer, published in 1662

A beautiful, heart-breaking Christmas wish

Two Years After She Passed Away, A Woman Gives Her Family An Unforgettable Christmas

Brenda Schmitz wrote a letter with three wishes right before she died, but asked a friend not to mail it until her husband had fallen in love again.




Brenda Schmitz, a wife and mother of four boys, passed away from ovarian cancer in September 2011.


A month before she died, Brenda wrote a letter to the Des Moines, Iowa, radio station “Star” 102.5. She asked a friend to wait to mail it until her husband, David, had fallen in love again.


Every year, the station takes submissions for Christmas wishes, granting a select few. The station brought in David and surprised him by saying they had received a letter from his wife.


“When you are in receipt of this letter, I will have already lost my battle to ovarian cancer,” Brenda wrote. “I told [my friend] once my loving husband David had moved on in his life and had met someone to share his life with again, to mail this letter to all of you at the station.”



Brenda’s first request was a day of pampering for David’s new love, a woman he met in October 2012 named Jane. “She deserves it, being a stepmother to all those boys,” Brenda wrote. “Make her smile and know her efforts are truly appreciated from me.”


Brenda also asked for a “magical trip” for the family, and lastly, a night out full of drinks, food, and fun for the cancer doctors at Mercy Medical Hospital, where she was treated.


“We’ve been doing the Christmas Wish program for 20-plus years. We’ve never received a wish like this, ever,” station manager Scott Allen told the Des Moines Register.


“It’s not surprising, ’cause the last year and a half she’s shown so many signs that she’s there,” David said, sharing a story of a double rainbow that appeared the morning she died. “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” was her and her son’s favorite song.


Along with the letter with the wishes, Brenda included an additional letter to be given to Jane, who has two kids of her own.


All three of Brenda’s wishes were granted by the station and local sponsors, who sent the family of eight to Disney World. “There wasn’t a dry eye in the room when we got [the letter],” Allen said. “It really inspired us to do something for her.”

A week from now...

A week from now will be the weekend after Christmas.

A week from now you may get up Saturday morning and get straight to work clearing away the last traces of Christmas.

Before you do, read these thoughts from my wise-before-her-time niece Meghan. They might make you change your plans.

And milk every ounce out of the holiday to see if you can make it last the whole year through.

How can people be so sick of Christmas? I’m not talking about the commercialism that the stores throw at us from the end of October until almost the end of December. No, I’m talking about the actual Christmas season. To me, Christmas is not the decorations, gifts, or even the music. Instead, it is the celebration of the birth of the Christ-child. Don’t get me wrong, I love the music and the gifts, I could take or leave the decorations, but I love them for what they represent and celebrate: the omnipresent God made flesh and sent to earth as a baby. This is why, when my dad starts playing Christmas music in October, I don’t think it’s too early for the music, instead I recognize it as a reminder of my God’s awesome power. I mean, sure, by the time Epiphany has ended I’m ready to put every piece of Christmas related propaganda into the attic, but I don’t want to forget what the true reason for the season really is. So why do we have to get burned out on Christmas so fast? Why can’t we remain excited about Christmas all year round? It’s because Christmas in our society is no longer about Christ’s gift to us but it is now about how much we can get for ourselves.

So I want to challenge you this Advent season and for the entire year to come, take time out once a day to remember what Christmas is really about. Remember that Christ came as a child to eventually die for the sins of the world. I challenge you to listen to Christmas music more than just during the “appropriate” time of the year. Listen to “Silent Night,” “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” or “O Holy Night” and pay close attention to what the words are really saying. Bust out singing one of these songs in the middle of July, or maybe at Easter when we once again celebrate Christ’s sacrifice. If you don’t think you can handle the music all year long, celebrate this season from now all the way through the Epiphany.

< Don’t take your Christmas tree down the day after Christmas, instead turn off the house lights, turn on the tree lights, lie underneath the tree, and watch the lights twinkle like stars in the dark. As you watch the lights, think about the star that led the wise men to Bethlehem all those years ago. If you don’t think you can handle all of these options then just choose one option. Or at least refuse to burn out on Christmas as quickly as you normally would.

This season only comes around once a year, but the miracle of this season should be reflected on all year long. If this means Christmas music has to play all year long to remind us of the miracle, then so be it. Jesus is more than just the reason for the season, He is the reason God will forgive that which He once deemed unforgiveable.

Reframing Christmas

This isn't typical... it's much more beautiful! What if we all took our Christmas and turned it on its head? My friend Amy (my hero) did and this is what it looks like:

[Mat 25:35-36, 40 NLT] For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.' ... "And the King will say, 'I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!'

Keeping Christ in Christmas for my family means we make an effort to not "do Christmas" to the extent the world does Christmas. Every single way we celebrate is based on tradition and someone's idea of what Christmas should look like (mostly from a commercial standpoint). If you think about it, what part of our Christmas celebration is biblical? The birth story of Jesus is certainly in the Bible :) But that is about it. Biblical hymns and scripture readings can certainly praise and honor our Lord at Christmas and Advent can sharpen our focus, but how much of that do we experience in the stores and in our online shopping? Santa is worshiped more than Jesus!

Think on this: when we celebrate a birthday in our family, how do we go about it? Do we decorate the house, talk about the person's birthday, have a party, and feast.... and then give gifts in the name and in honor of the birthday person to everyone but the birthday person? Here's another thought... when we celebrate a birthday, don't we try to focus on the birthday person him or her with their favorites, such as favorite meals, favorite restaurants, favorite gifts, etc.?

So, in order to celebrate Jesus' birthday in a way that honors Him, my immediate family started to focus on Him. (And this was NOT easy because Scott and I grew up with a typical American Christmas and we did it that way with our family until 4 years ago.) For us, that means we don't do Santa in order to keep Jesus the focus as the bearer of all good gifts (no images/decorations of Santa everywhere save a tree ornament or 2, no cookies, no list, no reindeer food, no footprints in the fireplace, etc.) We scaled waaaaaay back on the presents that we gave each other (especially the kiddos!). We decided to make each birthday the time that we would have fun with gifts and gift-giving.

This year, we are at our lowest gift total ever: one for each child from Mommy and Daddy and one to each other. (As the primary gift-procurer in our family, I cannot tell you how this has literally changed my whole outlook on this time of year!) On Christmas Day, we get out the charity catalogs in order to give gifts to Jesus. We each spend an amount of money on charity efforts that we choose as individuals. We pray before we open the catalogs and focus on hearing the Lord's guidance as we flip though the pages. World Vision, Voice of the Martyrs, Samaritan's Purse, Compassion International, and Heifer International to name a few....

There is still so much more that my family can do to scale back and refocus! Think about the love for prisoners, orphans, the poor, and widows our Lord wants us to demonstrate. I shake my head when I think of the sadness and neglect these groups experience at this time of year.

Lord, forgive us for creating a season in Your name that excludes You. Help us to focus on you and your heart this year. Guide our focus and shift it to You. Help us not just talk about honoring You at Christmas, but to do and act and serve in Your name. Amen.

Grateful for the little things

Today as I rode my bike in the 70-degree sunshine, I found the breathing easy as I shed my sweater, the to-do list and the stresses of the last week. Along the road to Jeremy's school enroute to his class party, I started a mental list of little things I'm grateful for:
-- Sunshine warm enough for a t-shirt in December
-- A t-shirt with red and white stripes like a candy cane
-- Tea olive trees that keep blowing their peppery jasmine smell across my path
-- A bike with a basket on it
-- A school close enough to ride my bike to
-- A quick zip past dozens and dozens of cars ditched blocks from the school
-- My front row parking space

-- A school Christmas party with 24 squealing children
-- A job that allows me the freedom to attend school events
-- A child that jumps for joy to see me
-- A child that turned eight today, so grown up but who will always be--as he calls himself--"the other baby who came for Christmas"
And finally,
-- I'm grateful for my blog so I can write this all down to remind me how amazing my life is!

Tiny little pieces make a whole

Another gorgeous photo story from my college roommate, Lillian... We visited the International Quilt Study Center at the University of Nebraska over Thanksgiving. The first set of quilts were put together by a male engineer. He looked very much like a farmer in overalls behind his sewing machine. And then there was the quilt made by Bertha Neiden that won the purple ribbon at the 1914 Nebraska State Fair. It has 10,222 pieces! Talk about preparation, patience and perseverance. To me, these photos are about the unexpected. Kind of like no one really expected Jesus to be born in a manager. And just like Jesus' birth, they show incredible beauty in their simplicity.

Each of us can find each other's light

From my friend Anne Mistretta:

I think if I can focus on these words from this song:

"Each of us can find each other's light"

and make them my attitude for the rest of this Advent season (and beyond) I might be at peace in the craziness that seems to follow (or lead) this time of year.

Love is Christmas

Thank you sweet Michelle for this great "new" song -- crazy this hasn't gone mainstream... LOVE IS CHRISTMAS... love is this song!!!! (Lyrics on the youtube page so watch full screen)

Gaudete Sunday

This third Sunday of Advent takes its common name from the Latin word "Gaudete" which means REJOICE!

The first thing Fr. Buddy told everyone in mass today was to smile. And rejoice. And don't worry that the Saints lost because we still have so much to be joyful for! (He can tie the Saints in sooo easily, this is Louisiana after all and hey, church? Saints???? :)

Anyhow, I'm thinking about my own rejoicing. That's pretty tough to do smack dab in a week of upheaval in which we decided Robby is changing schools in January. Again (third time in 2 1/2 years). In a week where I am feeling the uprooting of such tender shoots of roots so recently laid here in our new place, where I am feeling the isolation of change in tough choices, I started to think about my real roots. About my Mom and sister and brother. About my husband's family. About the very good friends that I have in my life that even though they are no longer down the street, I know should the rains come and the floods wash over me, they are going to be there. And so in my loneliness, I am still rejoicing.

And tonight, lighting the nativity scene on our mantle, I got to laugh along with one of those long-distance, crazy, fun-loving friends. (Someone for whom there will be much rejoicing when she hears she pulled another prank off against me, several dozen now for her, maybe one or two for me.) In the far right reaches of our scene, where the wisemen are slowly making their way from the East toward the star over the manager, there stood a fourth wiseman! And not just your average astronomer or king, but a man of rare, valued talent, a reformed sinner who knows what it is like to have everything and be reduced to nothing and climb out of the fiery pit to have another chance.

Yes, I'm sure by now you've guessed that wiseman (guy?) I'm talking about is Michael Vick, former Atlanta Falcon... his bobble head doll--which makes the rounds from our house to the Xides home and between several other friends depending on the year--showed up on my mantle last week and in my haste of the day to day, I didn't even notice. Tonight, like a smack to my face, there he was, managing to look humble behind the three other kings. I'm still laughing Kendall -- you nut! Now I know that the only reason you wanted to visit me last week was to deliver the bobble. Little did you know you'd be providing the joy this week instead. Well played, my friend....

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Let your forbearance be known to all, for the Lord is near at hand; have no anxiety about anything, but in all things, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God. — Philippians 4:4–6; Psalm 85 (84):1

Suspend all expectations

“It is now, at Advent, that I am given the chance to suspend all expectation...and instead to revel in the mystery.”

― Jerusalem Jackson Greer, A Homemade Year: The Blessings of Cooking, Crafting, and Coming Together

What's it all about???

An awesome email today from my mother-in-law on avoiding that sometimes unavoidable panic mode:
I just wanted to tell you that reading the note in Lucca's Bible started my day off beautifully. I was fretting the business of today -- the sheer busy-ness of today... (The reason I was up at 5:35 a.m. ? PANIC and it's still dark out!)

Too much to do - too little time to do it (all from my volunteering to do yet one more thing!!!). Like offering to decorate the rectory SOMETIME and getting a voice mail yesterday that Father would like it done before Monday since he is hosting a Christmas party for a group of priests on Monday!!! Yikes, I already have a jam packed weekend, complete with two funerals!!!

I read the blog -- I have calmed down -- it's going to get done... An e-mail has gone out to the gals in my Bible study that anyone interested in helping please meet at the rectory on Saturday morning at 11:00. (But now I have to make sure someone will be there to let us in. It's the old horse before the cart syndrome.)

I need to slow down... "Come Holy Spirit..."

I don't have to be at everything, I will miss the funeral Mass tomorrow and go to the viewing tonight. I can decorate my condo and tree sometime next week, I can take Morgan and James shopping next Saturday instead of this Saturday... Laundry, dusting and any household chores can wait for another time! And I shouldn't have to miss the party Saturday night!

Whew, okay Lord... together -- with the help of friends -- we can do this!

Yes, it's all about Jesus -- precious, beloved Jesus!

It feels good to put CHRIST back in CHRISTmas!

God bless, Mom

And a child shall lead us...

I honestly had no idea how I was going to salvage a post from the wreckage of today but God (as always) and my son and my niece provided...

I won't bore you with all the trivial details but the quick laundry list of today: a field trip on which I was an unwelcomed embarrassement to my teenager; a disagreement and subsequent run-in with a teacher that has me deeply vexed; three caterwauling children who, fighting over the front seat, performed a reality TV show (we'll call it "SMACKDOWN!") in the soccer stadium parking lot; a quarrelsome, out-of-sorts trio who had me clutching my head through some tricky traffic all the way home. Etc, etc, etc.

I wondered where the silver lining was? (But was heartened to know that I knew there was one!)

I managed to wrangle all to bed and spent a little extra reading time with the two youngest trying to calm and reconnect. When I walked in to my middlest's room I was surprised (and yet not, the silver lining was due after all) to find him reading his favorite bible. It is a very special book to him. My niece gave it to him for Christmas after her mission trip to Africa and before her mission trip to Thailand. Just the simple cover alone, soft leather-sheen embossed with a deep brown crown of thorns, is enough to put it all in perspective. But it was Abigail's words on the sweet letter she wrote him with the gift that brought me right back to center. And God's words, which Lucca and I shared, have me fortified for another day ahead.

Abigail, thank you again for sharing your faith with Lucca. I hope you don't mind that I am sharing some of what you wrote him with others here so that they in turn might be encouraged to turn to God's word in need!

Dear Lucca, I know you like reading so I bought you a very important and special book. It has stories about battles, princesses, espionage, friendship, betrayal and forgiveness. Most importantly, it is a love letter. This is the most life-changing book you can read. It is so controversial that it is illegal in dozens of countries so know that you are privileged to be able to freely own and read this book. It is my favorite book. It is one of those books that needs to be re-read over and over. Read it daily. Memorize it. The message that it brings is what life is all about! That message is that Jesus came so that the world might be saved. Look for the story of the cross, starting in Genesis. Remember the cross so that we can learn it is always all about Jesus. Love, Abigail

A little long, a lot worth it

My Dad always loved the flashmob videos and would often say he hoped to see one live in his lifetime. How glad are we that we staged a flashmob of carols and dancing in the middle of Christmas dinner two years ago -- to his great delight? He would have loved this one too! (Thank you to my mother-in-law for sharing and God Bless our military.)

Make straight the path....

Did I tell you my college roommate is a photo phenom? This picture, "Sunset Silhouette," is another spectacular shot from Nebraska. Typing this up as I'm enjoying a pretty nice sunset live out my back window! Pretty doggone amazing gift we get twice a day from God, eh? I don't think any other blather from me is necessary... enjoy the beautiful view....

Advent reconciliation

Our priest at church yesterday, Fr. Buddy, drew an amazing parallel between the following verse and Nelson Mandela...

[Matthew 3: 1-12] John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: A voice of one crying out in the desert, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.

This is one of my favorite descriptive verses -- can't you just see sand for miles and miles, with a terribly crooked footpath rutted deep by nomad travelers and camels? But to the point... one of the most important parts of waiting for Christmas is preparing our hearts for its coming. And sometimes an unclean heart needs to seek forgiveness. Or accept forgiveness from another. What an appropriate gesture for the season, the gift of forgiving.

And what an incredible example we have in Mandela when it comes to the ultimate sacrifice in forgiving transgressions. But there is a dark side to this tale. Fr. Buddy reiterated what I am ashamed to say I am just learning through news coverage of Nelson Mandela's death. Mandela did not always seek the straight path. Before prison, though he tried for years, he had given up on nonviolent attempts to stop apartheid and was involved in various sabotage plots, hoping to limit deaths but disrupt the racist government. He was jailed 27 years for his revolutionary schemes.

While the struggles continued after he left jail, what is most important is that he forgave. And that South African leaders stepped aside to allow him to lead and decided to work in conjunction with him, thus beginning one of the most tremendous rightings of wrongs in all of history.

I am trying to picture 27 long, mostly unnecessary years in prison and whether or not I would be conciliatory mood upon my departure. Exactly the kind of stretch, the sort of sacrifice, the making straight the paths that Matthew is instructing us to do this Lenten season.

“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”

― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom

Autumn on the bayou

Fall is my absolute favorite season. Last year, for our first fall in Louisiana, I was woefully unprepared for how little color they get around these parts. Not a whole lot of deciduous trees in the swamp.... The season came across as rather crispy brown and I felt myself grow a little moldy around the edges as well. This year I was ready for it. And have been wonderously rewarded with the subtle beauty that only comes from a wet climate. In addition, all the celestial bodies and weather patterns that need to align for the leaves to change have obviously come together to bring me some yellows and even those beloved reds this year, too.

And finally, with this awesome live oak in my front yard, I don't need to look for my colorful leaves. Georgia friends and lucky mountain dwellers, enjoy the vivid show for me, but this year I'm okay. I have greenery to keep me company and surround our home the whole year through.



Tree view from the kitchen table -- great for digestion!

Not so silent night....

Found the two youngest arm in arm singing Silent Night 'round the computer (where I'd put carols on to play). One of those beautiful, little things like Anne talked about yesterday -- very little in fact because just moments later, the slow waltz had morphed to loud drums, the decibels had tripled and they were stomping the ground screaming "Fight! ! Fight! ! Fight! !" to the beginning of AC/DCs "I'm TNT (Dynamite)." Well, we take what we can get, right? (I've never much liked the saying "Boys will be boys" because I feel like it can be an excuse for bad behavior, but in this case, what else can explain the quick transition?)

It's the little things

Thank you Anne Mistretta for today's entry. You have always supported this blog both with great entries and with words of encouragement. You were the first back on board this year and I sure appreciate you!<

This bird house has been perched on our fence for several years waiting for the momma bird who would call it home. I don't notice it much anymore as it just seems to be a part of the fence now. However, my daughter took the picture recently and the thought popped in my head, "I wonder if that is what the stable was like where Jesus was born?"

The thought kind of caught me off guard. How many of the little, unassuming things do I miss everyday as they "blend into the scenery" but might really be the important things? How many people walked past that stable and never had a clue that they had a chance to be part of the greatest love story ever!?

A reminder for me this Advent and this coming year to be looking for the small things.

Come Lord...

Today's words of wisdom come to us from Brother Ray Bulliard, the principal of St. Paul's Boys' Catholic School down the road from us in Covington, Louisiana. Brother Ray writes a weekly newsletter for students and families that is legendary around here... many friends tell me they get up at the crack of dawn every Sunday, brew a cup of coffee and sit down at their computer to soak in the message which has magically arrived overnight. Having recently started reading them myself, I can see what the fuss is about. His words of Advent greeting this week are simple and beautiful.

Let me begin by wishing you Happy New Year! We begin the month of December celebrating the season of Advent – which is the beginning of the new Catholic Church year -- a time of waiting. Advent commemorates the centuries of our awaiting the Messiah. Catholic families put out Advent wreaths, the priest wears purple vestments, and Jessie trees spring up – all to remind us of the season of waiting for the "fullness of time."

I like Advent. I know I’m in the minority here, but I find it a very human season. I know, too, that our students don't like Advent because they don't like the concept of waiting. They routinely grumble about waiting in the cafeteria line, about how far away a particular event is that they are looking forward to, etc. Somehow, in our instant gratification society that emphasizes getting what you want as quickly as possible, patience is no longer promoted as a virtue. In a world where we upgrade to faster computers, buy faster Internet access, text and tweet instead of talk, deliver overnight, buy faster cars, patronize establishments that offer "lunch in ten minutes or it's free" and emphasize that time is money, our students no longer know how to wait. And yet think about how much time we do spend waiting: in store lines, in traffic jams, for the check that's in the mail, for a happy time to occur or a difficult time to end.

Think about your child and how much time you have spent and continue to spend waiting for him: to be born, to learn to talk, to take his first step, to develop his talents, in the car pool line, to come home from a date, to see the importance of grades, to learn to appreciate family and life, to mature.

Advent teaches us to turn times of waiting into times of grace. At the beginning of Advent, at Tuesday’s assembly, I will remind the students of one of the oldest prayers in the Church. It consists of just one word: Maranatha, which is Aramaic for "Come, Lord.” If we can fill our time of waiting with God's presence, then the whole concept of patience will take on a new and more fulfilling meaning. What a wonderful way to fill periods of waiting! Use it as a greeting, too. Your spirits will be renewed and your time of waiting will be filled with blessing.

Ahh just right...

This seems a little less consumer -- high-gloss yes, but no product placement. Just the antidote for yesterday.

Piano Guys get ready for Christmas... the crass way

This video is for my sister and her daughters who adore The Piano Guys. It is a beautiful rendition of a favorite carol. But I almost didn't post it. Then I thought, no...let's chat about this! Why o' why did they have to take this song glorifying the Angels we've heard on high blended with a cool Little Drummer Boy overlay (the drum drawing is classic) and turn it in to a crass commercial? Beginning to end. Anyone else troubled? I like it enough to play it again, but probably with the video minimized. (Sorry sis!)

A blog all in photos...

My college roommate, Lillian, is a fantastic photographer. She has this incredible eye for detail and captures it so beautifully, I could do a blog all in photos with her shots, which turn the ordinary in to momentous. Thank you for this picture Lillian, taken on your trip to Nebraska for Thanksgiving.

I don't know much about Nebraska except that it is a place where people of very strong and salt-of-the-earth stock come from, like her Mom, her cousin Lael and her 105-year-old great Aunt Tillie. (We will hear more from Great Aunt Tillie later this month.)

And Nebraska is a place with real seasons, where you can take beautiful pictures like this one. I love it because it exudes the giving of thanks, the beauty of a simple life, the coming of the season. It's perfect. Thank you for letting me use it on the blog without your permission old roomie of mine. And thank you for understanding why I didn't get a chance to call today and ask your permission to use this for the blog...having something to do with Robby's school, traffic, the ongoing science project and accidentally calling out the fire department with a big pan of (very) fried fish. I assure you, it was not because I was b-u-s-y....

First Day of Advent 2013

It's the first day of Advent and my brain is already so full to bursting of all the *things* and to-do's careening toward me that it woke me from a peaceful sleep and has me making lists at 6:30 in the morning on my last day to sleep in before the end of Thanksgiving break.

It's the first day of Advent and one of the first things I have to do is move the fans and dehumidifiers in the family room to continue drying out the floor and furniture that got wet in the flood when our washer overflowed overnight Saturday night. To get to my computer, I have to step over the contents of the family room and laundry room -- all of it stacked in some bizarre obstacle course from our front hall to our dining room.

It's the first day of Advent and Robby's science project is due on Thursday and I told him I'd type in his numbers for him because let's face it, even adults can't really type numbers very well and darn it if he doesn't have 27 charts of numbers from all his data and measurements and let's face it, this is going to take me awhile.

It's the first day of Advent. And all I can think about is Lent. I want to give something up for Advent, to be more specific.

I decided, laying there in bed making lists, that I'm going to give up just one word for Advent this year. One single word. And if I can cut this word from my mouth for the entire month, I imagine my brain will believe it and my heart will overcome it. Here's the word: BUSY.

And that doesn't mean I won't be busy, I will. I am. I'm a Mom. I'm always busy. We always are. We humans are. We are busy. There. I said it. Got it out of my system.

It's my hope that dropping that word makes room for so much more. Because doesn't busyness beget more busyness? And the busier you feel, the busier you are? So maybe I'm naïve, but I figure, get rid of the word and maybe some of that busy will follow it? Get rid of the word and maybe just enjoy the ride a little bit?

Maybe beating back busy will mean pushing away all the trappings that comes with it. The chaos and crazy and disarray… and hmmm...now that I mention it, there might be a few words I could give up for Advent.

In getting rid of busy, here's what I wonder. Any room that comes from it, any quiet space I am able to create, doesn't that mean that much more room for opening myself to the season? In getting rid of busy, I hope to open myself to the gift that God gave me… wrapped in swaddling clothes some two thousand years ago… back when busy didn't have much meaning.