The True Reason for the Season

Caroline Godin reflects on the true reason for the season in her own time of need.

This year, Advent started without me. I made it to Mass and talked to my little one about the season. I covered liturgical colors and meanings with my religious ed students. But one thing that wasn’t done when that first Sunday passed was this: I hadn’t yet put out a single decoration. 

Those who know me know I’m crazy about Christmas, and I love my nativity sets — all three of them. But I was too busy running around, caring for my parents, driving back and forth, cleaning out a basement of memories, and toting kids places. 

Much as I love to start my season with some visual cheer, it’s been a tough one. Still, I haven’t forgotten the true reason for the season, and I cling to that when I see my bare mantel and windowsill. 

Advent: Little Lent 

Advent is also called Little Lent. The purple (and pink) colors are the same. It’s a time of waiting for a King to come to us. It’s a time of preparation, self-reflection, and contemplation. Advent is a penitential season and a time to remember not only that Christ is coming, but the reason for which He’s coming. 

As I prepare my parents for a big move to a small apartment, I draw my prayers to their needs, setting aside my own for a time. Mary and Joseph had their lives upset too as they packed up and journeyed to Bethlehem. They didn’t plan to have Jesus born in a stable, nor to flee to Egypt later, but they trusted in God’s promise and protection. 

I lean on that, knowing that He’s promised me protection as well. I don’t have an angry king after me, but I run to the Lord to seek protection from frustration, anger, sadness, stress, and whatever else plagues me in the moment. I pray and dump all my burdens on Him who came to us in the most vulnerable form, to Him who died that I might live. 

My decorations go up late, but my heart is near to Jesus now. I take it as a sacrifice during this Little Lent, and look forward to the celebration to come. 

All the Days of Christmas 

I’m grateful Christmas is more than a day for us. My heart needs this joy to last. My kids will tear open fancy paper, the family will feast, and they’ll be some much-needed time off from jobs, but the true reason for the season isn’t contained in a day. It is, after all, a season. 

We’ll keep our lights up longer, at least to Epiphany but maybe until Candlemas. If the lights don’t last that long, the nativity certainly does. It’s the first to go up and the last to get put away. Most people are done with Christmas after New Year’s, but some of us like to keep the joy going for a full forty days. 

Mary wasn’t bored of Jesus after a couple weeks. She not only had a newborn to care for; she had the Christ Child to raise for a specific purpose. She didn’t understand God’s plan, but she trusted Him. I may not understand all the struggles I endure, but I’m trusting in His guidance and His plan for me and my family. 

So I’ll keep that nativity up a bit more to remember this is a long journey. The colors may turn to green at Mass, but I’ll keep gazing at Mary and Jesus in the stable to get through my own season. 

Hope for tomorrow 

Whatever tomorrow may bring, there is hope. Maybe my decorations went up late. Maybe my Christmas was more hectic than I’d like. I’m still ever hopeful, because that’s what Advent and Christmas is all about: hope. The true reason for the season is God’s love for the world and Jesus’s sacrifice for mankind. Because of His love, we have the Cross. Because of the Cross, we have the Stable. Sometimes, that’s all I need. 

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Copyright 2024 Caroline Godin
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