Can we find purpose during the holiday hustle?
- Bruce Stambaugh: The Rural View
- November 28, 2019
- 877
Advent is at hand. It is the season of anticipation as we draw an end to another tumultuous year on planet Earth.
I find that both ironic and a touch melancholy. As we approach the winter solstice, a celebratory light should brighten the darkness. Yet, for too many, the light is dim or nonexistent. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Our western world is aglow and abuzz with glitzy television commercials and flashing and sometimes gaudy light displays in keeping the season. But of what honor is gaudiness when so many among us are sad, tired, distraught, hungry, homeless and helpless?
Enter Advent. It is the antithesis of the holiday commercialization that pounds our senses in nearly every aspect that the marketing Mad Men conspire to throw at us. We lust for gold, frankincense and myrrh 21st-century style.
Perhaps we need an epiphany before Epiphany to set the holidays aright. We seem to have turned the once admired axiom, “It’s better to give than to receive,” on its head. We need to right the ship before we sink.
Though an exclusive Christian tradition, Advent is an inclusive, active, intentional, iconic time for all. Advent is as much an action as it is a prelude to Christmas. In truth Advent’s meaning far preceded any contemporary applications.
More than a preparation for “God is with us,” some biblical scholars believe Advent was 40 days of fasting leading up to Epiphany. That shines a new perspective on an ancient holy day.
I apologize for the sermonette. I hope that with these few words others also will catch Advent’s meaning of watchfulness, alertness, love, peace and service.
There is no room in the inn during Advent for greed, power, position, wealth, riches, avarice and hate. Contemplation, meditation, prayer, thoughtfulness, charity, humility and assistance to those in desperate need purposely fulfill the Advent message and meaning.
So what’s my point? Share-A-Christmas is an excellent first start on the eve of this holiday season. The annual community goodwill effort sets the stage for even more opportunity to personally be kind and generous.
Those of us fortunate enough to live in the wealthiest country in the world can do a world of good more for those among us who are truly low in spirit. Slow down. Take time to notice who they are and where they are. Opportunities abound all around.
Once aware, be bold and take the next step. Do so in some personal way that satisfies an immediate need for others. It’s really not that difficult.
When it comes to charity and generosity, spontaneity seasons the gifts. Practicality wraps them, makes them intimate.
Here are a few starter suggestions: visit the sick, send a note or card to those in nursing homes, honor the widows and widowers with nothing more than your listening ears, and meet people where they are.
Though too humble to say so, my good wife set a perfect example for us last Christmastime. As we drove our vehicle toward a red light in downtown Harrisonburg, Virginia on a cold and blustery night, we noticed a homeless woman holding a cardboard sign on the corner sidewalk.
I offered a bottle of water that I usually carry for such an occasion. When Neva saw that the young woman had no gloves, she instantly reacted. Without hesitation my wife peeled off her own gloves, and I handed them to the woman.
Advent presented itself, and Neva responded. How can we likewise let our light shine in today’s darkness?
Bruce Stambaugh writes about nature, weather, hobbies and people, often using personal experiences. Much to their dismay, he also writes about his family. He uses humor and pathos when he can’t think of anything else to include. To read more The Rural View, visit www.thebargainhunter.com.