Obligatory Cheer

Today has been one of the more wonderful Christmas Eves out of those that I can recall, although of course nothing beats the childhood sense of delirious excitement. Then again, Christmas Eve always meant the dreadful tedium of cleaning to be done in preparation for the greater delight of Christmas Day itself, and really all that made it worthwhile to my child's mind was that in the chill of the morning we would wake up to sticky buns, hot chocolate, and the wonderful tree with all of its attendant joys. If those were the things that mattered, who really cared if the piano legs were dusted and the bathroom smelled like Pine Sol? But Mother knows best...

These days, the tree is fake and doesn't smell quite as glorious as they once did (although it also doesn't shed or require watering, as my mother would probably point out), the family is harder to accumulate into the less cramped quarters of our remodeled living room, and instead of a big meal, we're having a large-ish breakfast prepared by yours truly and a soup and sandwich lunch that is neither ham nor lamb nor any of those large racks of meat that traditionally form the centerpiece. And yet, as I said, this has been one of my favorite Christmas Eves to date. It may be cliche and perhaps you, like myself, will have a spontaneous desire to play the Charlie Brown Christmas theme song, but honestly, it is all about relationships.

We celebrate the birth of our savior with the cheeriness of red and the living, peaceful hues of greenery. That most precious birthday of all, worth every second of preparation, but not requiring it, because what that birth, life, death, and resurrection have given us is beyond all of the shopping, baking, melee, and madness... It's the eternal love of eternal beings who set aside time out of the hustle and bustle to grow warm together, to sing, to make merry and mayhap even get a little too merry with the eggnog.

Perhaps, like Martha, we are all too inclined to get caught up in the preparations because we want to honor our friends and family with the best. But let us also, like Mary, be willing to pause midstride to hug one of those friends or family members, and simply rest with them. I spent the first half of my day at work, making lattes, brewing coffee, and running orders, but I did all of that with some of my favorite people in the whole world. The candlelight service that I will be going to tonight with a close and dear friend, though filled with the glory of traditional Christmas hymns and the light of the Christ child, will not be any more meaningful than those few hours spent ruining my knees and laughing with my coworkers, for it is those latter moments that give meaning and fullness to the former ones.

May your day also be full of glad tidings, good cheer, and people whom you love. Merry Christmas!