It is fun to stop and think about how engaging all our senses brings Advent to life. You know what it is like to not stop and really taste your lunch but just go into auto pilot mode and spoon it in while you read emails, watch TV, or scroll on Facebook. Your spoon hits the bottom of the bowl, and you realize you are finished and really had not paid any attention to what you were eating. I find myself thinking I’m still hungry but really, I am not hungry, I just didn’t stop, really taste, and enjoy what I was eating. I know many of us do something like this during Advent. We don’t stop and savor the experience of Advent. We get caught up in the busy activities and don’t slow down and just experience – touching and seeing that crocheted Christmas stocking knitted for Hannah 40 years ago by Millie Tillier. Stop and thank God for the many people that have been important to me. Making date candy with Daddy using Mother’s recipe- such a delightful smooth, creamy taste and smell of Christmas past. Thank God I had parents that made warm and loving Christmas traditions for my brothers and me. My Christmas CDs are like visiting with old friends as I pull them out the day after Thanksgiving and I get serious about listening to all kinds of Christmas music—Elvis, Barbara Streisand, Michael Buble, Perry Como and Handel’s Messiah to ground me in the season. Christmas Eve service always brings tears to my eyes. All my senses are bombarded, and I am overwhelmed with emotion. The sanctuary never looks more beautiful than when we sing by candlelight. I will try again to slow down and be very deliberate as I go through the activities of Advent this year. I’m excited to touch, smell, taste, feel and hear Advent not just during worship but every day this Advent season.
Kathy Stanley