Different December

December can be polar opposites of the season. It used to be the month of mad mall shopping for the right present to wrap, baking trays of cookies to share with others and writing the Christmas newsletter to slip in the countless Christmas cards ready to mail. For some it is sledding in the snow, flying off to a sandy tropical beach and for others it’s singing around or before a log fire. But it can also be the month of missing the ones we love, gaining pounds from too many chocolates and entering a season of misery with overcharged credit cards and family gatherings all gone wrong. And then there’s this year - a season very different from any we have ever experienced - whether it was festive with carols or fraught with sadness.

We are crossing the bridge of change and things look very different from what once was. It’s difficult to transition at the best of times, and now we are doing so with varied opinions, information and emotions wrapped with a bow during a season of festivities that don’t seem all that fun or fulfilling. We aren’t sure what’s on the other side, but we know we have to keep moving forward to get to the other side of whatever will be.

There are going to be disappointments because we wish things were like they were and they’re not. We will be dismayed that we can’t be physically together to celebrate a beautiful tradition and we are distraught because that’s just not the way it used to be.

There is a Hebrew word for what we need to do. “Ruach” means to breath. Yes, take a breath. Shut out the noise. Breath. Breaths. Again. Breath. Stop the discouraging thoughts. Don’t be detached from your humanness. Don’t be disenchanted with the differences this year. Instead, delight in a child’s laughter; declare the good news of Jesus’ birth into the world; and dance to the music of the beauty within and around us. The angels brought tidings of comfort and joy. Let us find those in these days.

“But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.” Luke 2:10