This year, I'm not sure I know what Christmas is about; many people seem to be struggling to find their holiday spirit. Lots of people seem to be dealing with loss or illness. One good friend, with a chronic illness, has had some severe health problems; my dear aunt, with whom I spend my holidays, suddenly seems to be heading rapidly toward the end of her life, and I find that devastating. I waver between tears, nostalgia, and a bubbling inner contentment with life; I'm finding joy in watching a flock of birds on a bare tree, and simple conversations with friends, while spending other sad times remembering all that's been lost.

Greetings to all the saints in blue!

We come together tonight to worship the Divine--whatever we call her; however we see him; in whatever ways we experience it. And so we begin by asking that Divinity to restore, refresh and renew us:

Eternal One,
Silence
from whom my words come;
Questioner
from whom my questions arise;
Lover
of whom all my loves are hints;
Disturber
in whom alone I find my rest;
Mystery
in whose depths I find healing
and myself;
enfold me now in your presence;
restore me to your peace;
renew me through your power
and ground me in your grace.

From Guerrillas of Grace, by Ted Loder;
published 1984 by Innisfree Press.

Promoted by Rain -- with apologies for the lateness of the hour

Each winter as the year grows older,
We each grow older too.
The chill sets in a little colder;
The verities we knew
Seem shaken and untrue.*

For Christians, this is the beginning of the Advent season, a time of expectation, but it's also the ending of the year; for those of us in the Northern hemisphere, days are growing ever shorter, and where I live trees are bare and the grass is brown. It's not just that nature seems to be dormant, but rather that the world seems to be in an active process of dying--we can literally feel the darkness coming ever more quickly, the cold growing ever stronger. It does not seem an appropriate time for hope.