Home for Christmas

 Dear College Kid and Post-Grads, 

Welcome Home! You are finally here! And we are so happy to welcome you. It's been a long semester. You've faced trials and tribulations. You still need to meet your own benchmarks and others you've exceeded. But it's over now. For now, you must rest. For now, you are released from your duties and obligations for studying and group projects. You don't have to worry about homework and practice and when to wake up and when to eat. You are home. You can sleep until noon. We are here to love you back to health and wellness and give you that unmistakable feeling of home. 

Some things haven't changed here at home. There will be bacon and eggs for breakfast and we will get cream donuts from McMillan's tomorrow. We will have bagels and cream cheese one morning. Some things are new to us. We will order the meat lover's pizza. We will make room on the shelf for your protein powder. Some things have changed. We painted the front door. We took down the curtains in the bathroom. We hope you like it. We may have overdecorated a bit, but bear with us. 

Why do we come home for Christmas? It's in every song you hear. Baby, please come home. Driving home for Christmas. Home for the holidays. Every one of us, no matter our age, longs for home at Christmas. We long for the days of yore, that time when we were held, when we believed, when we thought magic was real. In our jaded world, and our jaded souls, we have a yearning to return to that time.

Let me tell you a story. When you are little, Christmas is magical. You believe in Santa and miracles and anticipate the surprise and delight of Christmas morning. Then in your tween years, you lose a little innocence and that delight becomes knowledge about Christmas and the spirit of giving. And you are learning to give a little yourself.  Then in your twenties, you might become discouraged and you have lost hope that things are ever going to be okay. You don't even believe in searching for the magic again. You are giving up. The magic and memories of childhood seem delusional but you still wish deep down for a return to those very memories, those very moments. We wish we could come Home for Christmas, back to a time when all seemed right with the world. 

Except was that true? Every generation has faced its own Christmases at war. Every generation has faced its own political strife. Every generation has faced its own bills and losses, its family sick and ill and dying. We all learn as young adults that Christmas is not a coverup, just that the adults were cushioning us from the fear and the darkness. Now you are on the other side. You no longer believe in the innocence of youth and the magic of a sleigh. It seems impossible to go back, except it's not. It can happen in your heart. Sounds cliche? All you have to do is believe. 

And what do you believe? Do you believe in the literal light, the star in the darkness? No, the darkness is not in the sky; it's in our hearts and souls and minds. It's in our world. It's in the grocery store and the checkout line. It's when we are in a rush and the car is out of gas and we're stuck in traffic. It's in the news that a loved one is sick. It's in canceled plans. It's in the bills we owe. It's in the headlines we hear and read online. It's in countries far and in neighborhoods near. So how do we bring light? We bring it bit by bit. We light one small candle. Remember the song you learned in Pre-K? One small candle? Our own. We do our best. We buy the gas. We take a deep breath.  We pay the bill. We close our eyes and pray.  Pause and feel the lightness. Light a candle. 

Where do we get the light? We relight the pilot flame in our homes and at our hearths. We feed on home-cooked food and on quiet moments. We nourish ourselves with a song, a cup of hot cocoa, a glass of wine. We order the pizza you like. We laugh. We snuggle on the couch and watch an old movie. But we also let our hearts be open. Open to love. Open to light. Open to joy. Open to happiness. It's okay to let the light in. Nothing is going to change the world unless we do. Feeling sad and glum is not going to bring peace to Israel and Gaza and Ukraine. But allowing peace in our hearts will change our little world. Our little space here at home. 

We rebuild our spirit. The spirit that lives within us. And then we can give. We give joy. We bring joy to the small moments each day. We smile in the checkout line. We host the party. We offer to help. We deliver food to the hungry. We give of ourselves. We give of our time.  We  give of our treasures and send a check. We bring light to the dark world. It's not out there. It's in us.  Both the darkness and the light. Let the light prevail. It's not just for the world, it's for us too, in our souls that we must allow the Light to come. 

With love on Christmas.