Love part two...Joy part one

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,

Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;

Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,

In the bleak midwinter, long ago.

This is one of my favorite carols.  First, and foremost, we can be almost certain that Jesus, being born in the Middle East, did not have a white Christmas.  To be sure, it can be very cold in the evenings when the sun goes down, but snow is not the norm.  Second, for someone who has spent most of his life in the Northern part of the United States, I know what it is like to celebrate Christmas in a different climate than Jesus lived.  Here snow has fallen snow on snow, and we anticipate getting more tonight.  The earth is hard, frozen by pellets of rain that fell yesterday.

Winter slows you down.  It slows you down in terms of how fast you can drive.  It slows you down when you try to walk on icy sidewalks.  It slows you down as you take refuge in your home to escape the frosty winds that swirl around.   It was perhaps such a sensation that led Shakespeare to write, "Now is the winter of our discontent."  The grey conditions today can certainly unsettle us.  In a season when the earth sits under a blanket, dormant and resting; winter is a time of taking stock.  There is the dwindling of one year and the dawning of the next.  There is the convergence of the past, the present, and the future that is keenly felt in December and January.  

Brian McLaren looks at winter and attaches words like: "behold", "yes", and "silence".  At first, I was not sure I was with Brian on that.  I started thinking, sarcastically, "Behold another grey day".  Or imagined saying, "Yes another snow storm!"  However, I could think of a moment for the last one with three simple words: "School is canceled"...cue stunned silence of parents.

Yet, I think there is a beauty to behold even in the bleak midwinter, but it comes after living in the seasons.  It comes after beholding the first crocus that came up last March; it comes after beholding the green of grass; it comes after beholding the warmth of a summer's day and the refreshing cool of a swimming pool; it comes after nature's pyrotechnics show known autumn.  Then, there is snow on snow.  There is a beauty to that.  It leads not to a loud, enthusiastic "YES", but one that we whisper as we stare out the window.  There is an affirmation from God to slow down and savor.  There is a hope found in the sound of a snow flake softly landing on the ground.  

To be sure, Jesus might not have experienced that, but it is worth finding joy and hope in the seasons of life.  And perhaps if we open ourselves to the wisdom of every day...no matter the date or the weather...we might sense a trace of God's grace stirring.

Blessings ~