'Tis the Season to Reflect

If we are, as Ashley Montagu says: "the carriers of culture" and we do indeed carry Christmas, then it behooves each of us to DO but not overdo. As we create magic for others, we must create space for us to know the moments too. Tis the season to be quiet...may you make the most of your advent time.

I'm home today. I finally listened to my body, specifically my gut, which was literally telling me to slow down and rest.

Since Thanksgiving I've been pushing myself both at work and at home. A new "challenging" client at work, the hustle and bustle of creating Christmas for my family along with all of the daily obligations just added up to system overload.

In my past life, I held a yearly retreat for young mothers of our parish at the start of Advent. Advent comes as the days reach their shortest during the year. The hours of darkness grow and with that, comes the chance to sit back and embrace the quiet, winter nights.

I particularly love the winter sky; pale blue and white days and blue violet twilights. The stars are abundant and night time walks often give me a new appreciation for the beauty of the dark, winter sky.

Today as I took a break from all of the rush and bustling about, I read the quote by Ashley Montagu on
author Joan Anderson's blog. She spoke of her own private retreat from the Christmas decorating and entertaining.

It was a timely reminder for me to recall the beauty of the Advent/Midwinter Season. It's the season to be quiet, to pause under the beauty of the dark, winter sky and reflect.