O come, thou Key of David, come,
and open wide our heavenly home;
make safe the way that leads on high,
and close the path to misery.
(from The Hymnal 1982, hymn 56)
The tree occupies a significant amount of space in our small living room. Because we have travelled at Christmas time in recent years, it has been some time since we brought a tree into our house. But this year we are staying home, and I find myself eager to gather up once again traditions that have been set aside.
And what will they look like now, these rituals and activities that have lain in the wings while our family life has moved on? We have changed, as individuals, and as the complicated dance that represents us as some kind of whole.
What furniture will need to be displaced, what patterns of living rearranged, what spaces opened to allow for our joyful preparations? What will we discover about who we are and about the one for whom we prepare?
The coming of Christ opens a new way. Every time. At all times. This time.
copyright © Anne E. Kitch 2012
