There is Value in the Kneading

The day 

has been 

a trying one.  

Daily cares weigh heavily, yet ...

we have sandwich rolls to make.

  I like to know 

what's in the food my family eats, 

...and who put it there.

~~~~~

The rhythm of kneading begins.

  I think of the centuries of women who kneaded cares away before me...on rocks, in backs of covered wagons, before the campfire.  Women who worked the dough in tiny cottages, and expansive homes...on plantations and farms, in tiny apartments.

It is a rhythm that women understand.  It is a dance we dance together, across the generations.

~~~~~

There is value in the kneading... 

...the day falls away.

For now,...

.... all is well.

~~~~~

There is love

in the bread...and all is well.

Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life.  Whoever comes to me will never be hungy, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

~John 6:35

May all your cares be light.

Pax Christi,

~Michelle

There is Value in the Waiting

The stores are full of Christmas.   Carols are playing; lights are flashing, decorations sparkle.  It’s fast food Christmas.  No need to wait... 

But should we?  Should we wait, prepare, take time to anticipate?

 

The Church has a long history of honoring preparatory seasons.   

Advent is one of them.  This period of observance has developed over centuries for a reason….because it works.  The Church is, after all, made up of people,… centuries of Christians who have bequeathed to us a rich heritage, of traditions that work...

...There is value in the waiting.   

The light shines brighter when you’ve been sitting expectant, awaiting its arrival, in the darkness.  So, as the evenings grow darker and colder, embrace the eclipse of winter.  Be a little counter-cultural.  Put up the manger scene, but hide the baby Jesus away in the sideboard, until Christmas eve, for now.   Ponder the gift.  Experience what it is like to anticipate, to long for, his arrival. 

Credit: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AdventCandles.jpg

By Jonathunder (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 

(www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) 

Copyright: Wikimedia Commons

Consider assembling an Advent wreath. 

 All it really takes is four candles, and a circle of greenery.  One new candle is lit each of the four Sundays between now and Christmas.  They are best lit in the darkness, so that children, and adults, can sense the wonder…the marvel, of one, then… two, three, four tiny flames permeating the long darkness, with hope for the future. 

 Four candles.  There are four candles to be lit before he arrives.

Ditch the fast food culture, and bask in the anticipation.

Pax Christi,

~Michelle

For Your Advent Celebrations


Linked with:
Desiring Virtue's Cultivating a Christ Centered Christmas: Resources and Link-up
 
and