Christmassed Out?

Recently away at a personal retreat, I joined other retreatants at a common dinner. Not surprisingly, one of our topics of conversation was Thanksgiving plans. It was then we learned that two of our companions happened to be chefs. "Ugh!" one exclaimed. "I'm 'turkeyed out.' I've been cooking turkeys for about two months now." The other agreed...come early October, turkey becomes the featured item at restaurants and grocery delis. The first chef emphatically stated that she was not making a turkey for her own Thanksgiving celebration.

Which, of course, immediately made me reflect on the treasure that is the Holy Season Advent.

Our society--including retailers, to be sure, but also offices, restaurants, radio and television stations, neighbors, and yes, sadly, even some churches--is convinced that Christmas begins (in 2014, anyway) sometime around the first week of October and continues, full-bore, until December 26 (when the post-Christmas sales begin). The problem? When we are thus saturated by Christmas (music, "spirit," decorations, flavors, colors, traditions, etc.) for weeks on end, the actual celebration loses a lot of its meaning. It can even become distasteful. We only come truly to treasure something when it is out-of-the-ordinary.

I love pizza. It's easily my favorite food. But if I were to have pizza every day or night for a few days, I would find I'm not enjoying it as much...I may even begin craving other foods! Pizza always tastes best, and is most a treat, when I haven't had it for a good long while--especially when I know pizza night is coming a few days in advance!

Similarly, Christmas is so much richer when we take the time to prepare for it without actually celebrating it. That's what Advent is all about...our anticipation and preparation for the celebration of Christmas (which, incidentally, in church reckoning, actually begins the evening of December 24 and continues for a minimum of 12 days).

Perish the thought we should arrive at December 25 and people are so 'Christmassed out' that we cannot properly celebrate the birth of God-made-flesh, or worse--that we are tired of Christmas and are ready for it all to be behind us. What a sadness that would be.

Instead, this year, take a trial run through Advent...coming this Sunday to a liturgical church near you!