Several years ago I started feeling very frustrated with the "rush for Christmas" all over the United States, starting the day after Halloween (if you're lucky they wait this long). What ever happened to Thanksgiving? But, more importantly, I realized that we were completely missing the Advent season. We were celebrating Christmas during Advent, and ? (nothing) during Christmas.
So, I decided I was going to make a point to celebrate Advent with my family during the Advent season. And I was going to celebrate Christmas during the Christmas season. But, because I am a person who can take things to extremes, I couldn't just make little changes here and there. No, I decided to completely strip the Advent season of anything Christmas. This meant no decorations, no tree, no "Christmas" songs (Advent songs were OK - songs that talk about the coming of Christ , but never the birth of Christ because that's for Christmas), etc. "Do I even forgo the Christmas parties I get invited to because they are during Advent?" I asked myself. Yes, I was rebelling in my own way. After all, it was the principle of the matter... Right?
I felt very noble, very Catholic, in my counter-cultural conquest... but, I'm not feeling the Joy of the season. I find myself asking the question "why is it when I'm trying to do things the "right" way, in proper order, am I feeling so much less joyful about the season?" I've been so determined to ignore all things in the cultural-commercial-Christmas that I've ignored the excitement of the season as well. So much so that it doesn't even seem like a special time to me. Sure, we are doing our advent readings each night as we light the candle around our dining room table. But, what about being able to enjoy my kids' Christmas concert at church, or their Christmas party at school? I was just getting annoyed every time another "Christmas event" was announced during the Advent season. So, I am spending the Advent season in a spirit of annoyance instead of a spirit of awaiting and anticipation.
Where's the balance?
Could I really put up Christmas decorations in the middle of Advent? Can I picture it? Am I a "bad Catholic" if I put up lights before Christmas Eve? What if I actually had a little fun with the idea of Santa for my 3 little children? Shall we go ahead and decorate the tree?
I was recently listening to The Catholic Channel on satellite radio and I liked what I heard one woman say with regards to the way she goes about decorating and celebrating during the Advent season. She suggested this:
Just as a mother slowly gets the baby's nursery ready for the birth of her child, so too she decorates her house slowly, getting it ready for the birth of our Lord. One thing at a time - not rushed the day after Thanksgiving - until finally, on Christmas Eve, the entire house is ready for Christmas.
I kind of liked that analogy and am letting it sink in.
What do you do to balance things out? I'll be asking this question in many of my blog posts: How do you keep yourself in this world without being of this world?
There are so many times that I'd rather just be in another world. A world where everyone at our Catholic school went to daily Mass and all the moms talked about NFP together. A world where every Catholic was pro-life. A world where everyone got excited about their faith. A world where every priest was orthodox. A world... Get my drift?
But, that's not the way the world is so I'm trying to find the balance... The Catholic Balance.
