saint of the week

Saint of the Week  December 20, 2007

 

 

Nearly every morning my two dogs and I head into the woods.  They get to let the clutch out and I "plan my work and work my plan" while getting some exercise.  Yesterday morning I brought along my 8 "how many more minutes till Christmas" year old.  I was hoping that she would burn off some energy.  It was a crisp morning.  The ground was frozen and it was lightly snowing.  Given the amount of rain that we have had in the past weeks, the trails were dotted with huge frozen puddles. Because the ice on the puddles was only ½ inch thick or so, I told my daughter not to walk on the ice.

We crunched and chatted our way to the turnaround spot and then began our journey back.  Our younger dog did not care much about the thin ice she just hopped her way through smiling all the while.  I was about 5 feet ahead of my darling daughter when I heard a loud crunch and a cry, "Mommy help!'  I turned to see my cherub knee deep in a puddle.  I lunged toward her as she stepped out on to more ice and again was knee deep.

She was in tears.  I pulled her out, hugged her and emptied her boots.  She asked how she was going to get back.  I told her that she would have to walk.  "But my feet are cold". 

"I know honey, but there is no other way, you have warm clothes on, you'll be ok."

"Are you sure?"  "Yes."  As we walked, I could not help but ask why she did not listen to me.  She does this a lot.  She often has to learn lessons the hard way.

 

This is the third week of Advent.  Christmas is four days away.  We are shopping, cleaning, baking, and hurrying our way through the season.  Why aren't we listening?

When we are tired why don't we listen to our bodies and slow down.  Are we working for the applause of others or for the applause of heaven?  When we are feeling lonely or depressed why don't we listen to our heart?  Our heart longs for what no human or human creation can fill.  Our heart longs for God.  When our mind asks, "Where are you Christmas, why can't I find you?"  Why don't we listen to scripture and hear that Christmas is found not in a mall, but in walking away from our earthly pride and stepping into a stable.

 

Don't spend this season wondering how you ended up in a mess.