REJOICE! The Journey to Christmas Has Begun

Turkey Day is over and now the 2023 Christmas odyssey is underway. It is my favorite time of the year and it all begins with the First Sunday of Advent.

I love the ‘reason for the season,’ which is the Baby Jesus. I love the awe in the faces of so many children and the extra smiles that come from the wonder and mystery surrounding Santa’s impending visit. I love the cookies and candy and cake and even some of the anxiety and pressure and insanity that mixes in as we move forward. I even love eggnog, fruitcake and pfeffernuesse. I am a hopeless Chrismatist.

More than anything, I love thinking about the Holy Family. Have you ever really thought about the Blessed Mother when she was a young girl about 14 or 15 years old? She was almost full-term in her pregnancy and was forced to travel on the back of a donkey for more than 80 miles to fulfill the census law. We have to marvel at her husband, Joseph, who must have  loved her so much that he was willing to accept her Baby as his own. He led her and the unborn Child on this journey, protected them with his life, and made sure that the Savior of all mankind lived to complete His mission. This was, after all, a very different time culturally. Mary’s alternative could have been death by stoning.

Thank you, St. Joseph. Thank you, Mother Mary. Thank you, Jesus.

Yes, the Season of Advent began this Sunday (December 3) I have no idea how the days following will play out. No matter what, it will be OK. We are on our way to Christmas. For all of you willing to embrace the season, it is a beautiful, wondrous time for family, friends, love, joy and miracles. Even those who are experiencing debilitating illness or the grief of losing a loved one can find comfort in the Baby born in a cave surrounded by farm animals. That Baby is everyone’s salvation, even the broken-hearted.

Celebrate the feast of Christmas every day, even every moment in the interior temple of your spirit, remaining like a baby in the bosom of the heavenly Father, where you will be reborn each moment in the Divine Word, Jesus Christ.
–St. Paul of the Cross (Catholicquotes.org)

Remember that the Advent Season is all about reflecting on how we can prepare our hearts and homes for Christ’s birth in the world as it is today. So, wrap the advent season around you and absorb the love and warmth that comes with it. From the joyful to the ill and downtrodden the love of Jesus is there for everyone. Stop what you are doing, take in a deep breath, and fill yourself with the LOVE in the air. It’s FREE.

In closing, as we continue on this unpredictable and happy odyssey into Christmas wonderment, I would like to wish you all a beautiful, blessed, healthy, and joy-filled Christmas.

© Larry Peterson 2023

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