The Advent of Hope..........

“Tom has been having a difficult patch, and we meet at the church of IKEA as often as possible, because it is equidistant from our houses and always cheers us up.

 Yesterday I asked, 'In your depression, and with so many people having such a hard time, where is Advent?' He tried to wiggle out of it by saying, 'You Protestants and your little questions!' Then, when pushed, he said: 'Faith is a decision. Do we believe we are ultimately doomed and fucked and there's no way out? Or that God and goodness make a difference? There is heaven, community, and hope - and hope that there is life beyond the grave.' 
'But Tom, at the same time, the grave is very real, dark and cold and lonely.' 'Advent is not for the naive. Because in spite of the dark and cold, we see light - you look up, or you make light, with candles, or with strands of light bulbs on trees. And you give light. Beauty helps, in art and nature and faces. Friends help. Solidarity helps. If you ask me, when people return phone calls, it's about as good as it gets. And who knows beyond that.” 
― Anne Lamott

It rises like a wave in the midst of the storm,

 its' crest rising high for all to see 

propelled upward 

then falling

moving

invisible suddenly

and then from out of someplace

there

in a distant 

caused by some Force

that I can't see

or describe

It raises up again

resonates 

in the world

shows all it fury and energy

and

Hope's Advent

 it sneaks upon us 

moves over us

through us

in us

and we grab hold

like little kids fighting over

the last twinkie in the cupboard.

It rises

and

we reach forth

grasping for some of its energy

beckoning it to raise us up with it

begging IT to take us up toward the light

to a place

where 

darkness 

and hurt 

and

 pain 

disappear for a bit and our souls feel alive.

...

and

so

in the midst of

world crises

chemical threats

financial cliffs

and

economic unrest

the world moves

moves forward

and

we 

little specks that we are

look

toward

the wave

of
Advent this season

with 

anticipation 

of  a

HOPEFUL sabbatical of sorts.

It rises in its liturgical purple and blue colors

comes from out of the season of ordinary time

and

pulls us up with all its energy

to experience a ray of Sun

a glimmer of light

a flash of hope

if only for a fragment of a second 

maybe just on Sunday morning when the candle is lit.

Do I believe in the Sun when the Sun doesn't shine?

some days....

today I do...

mainly because

hope 

rose from out of nowhere

embraced me

lifted me

floated me up

and

filled me 

.....

Advent

Hope

...

may each of you

experience 

the wave

and 

may your hearts 

be filled

with 

HOPE.

Happy Wednesday December Morning........

and

blessings.......

The radical rambler...