Peace, Hope, Love and Joy- the Four Sunday’s of Advent

I am on the other side of 50.  Chances are—I’m on your side.  I’m doing things now that I’d never thought I’d do, like drink tea and listen to public radio.  I follow the political landscape and watch one football game a week.   I reflect on how hard I had it when I was young (though truthfully, I have a hard time remembering ever shoveling snow or pushing a lawnmower).  But I did have to share a television (with no remote) and a telephone (attached to the wall) with two sisters.  Yeah, it was tough.

One of my favorite memories from back in the day was when the Sear’s Wishbook arrived.  I would turn the glossy pages until they arrived at toys.  A couple years later it was sports related stuff.  A couple years after that it was electronic gadgetry.   Oh, how I wished I could buy everything I wanted from that catalogue.  Oh, how I wished Santa would drop the sleigh off in our driveway.  But it never really worked out quite like that.  Between Santa and my parents I had a pretty good take.

A few years later I was taking the giant tips I got from paper route (everyone knew, you never quit a paper route just before Christmas!)- I went out and purchased my mother a Mr. Coffee.  I thought that was the coolest gift a kid could give his mother.   I think I bought her a Dust-Buster the next year, not as cool.  However, there was this incredible feeling of satisfaction when a gift was picked and wrapped and then given.  And there is most definitely a feeling of anxious joy when a loved one is opening a gift that you put care into making or selecting.

There were years when I was doing pretty well and probably over-purchased gifts.  There was a year when my financial situation was pretty bleak and I made gifts.   Gift giving should never been a competition. The feeling that seems the best for me is when a gift is given with no expectation of an equal gift.    There have been times when a person has given me a gift, and I don’t have a gift to offer.   Isn’t it the hardest thing to refrain from running out and making a last minute purchase to equal the score?   Of course, that is not the point.  But it is so hard to accept a gift without a gift to give back.

Now that I’m on the other side of 50—the pages of my wish book have changed.  They are now pages filled with family, friends and a congregation.  Some pages are memories from the past, and other pages are blank and I can’t wait to color them in as the years pass.  I don’t expect glossy pages filled with colorful shiny objects.  The pages are filled with memories and dreams of Hope, Peace, Love and Joy.

And yes, every year when I open that book, there are few pages dedicated to Jesus, Mary and Joseph (ironically, a favorite expression of my mother before she got coffee).

May the pages of your Wish Book be filled your favorite Advent and Christmas memories. And May your Wish Book be filled with all the hope, peace, love and joy of Christ you can fit under your Christmas tree.

Have a blessed Advent season and a very merry Christmas!