It's Christmas Eve...

And the presents are wrapped, the leche quemada cooked, the green bean casserole assembled, and the times of arrival for various family events have been verified.  The weather is clear and with a nip in the air, and in the midst of all of the busy-ness of the season, I felt the need to go record the fall color which arrived just in time for the holiday.  We have been blessed with stunning yellows, reds, and oranges this year - all due to the timing of the first cold snap, and it all just drew me out of my four walls.

And then, something drew me to this one brilliant leaf by itself on the mulch.  Alone, but striking in its alone-ness.  I've had plenty of days over the past few months, and in my life in general, when I've felt very much alone, and so, I guess, my eyes were drawn...  Nature has always been a balm to me when sadness, and "missing," and loneliness were unavoidable companions.  Some say that loneliness is avoidable, but I'm not so sure. It is often dealt with a whimsy that is hard to understand, except that human beings are always in the mix, and so it is subject to their whims.

Nature, on the other hand, makes few demands of us, except to respect her.  She welcomes us no matter what our station or status, and rains, or shines on our parade with no concern for "who" we are.  There is the comfort of consistency in that.  And there is consistency in what we have been told of our Father in Heaven and His love for us - His ongoing concern and hope that we will turn to Him always.  How that is reflected in the church on this Earth may be an entirely different thing, due again to the whimsy of human beings. It is way too easy to speak in platitudes, and in terms of "should," and to forget the use of very tangible signs of presence/recognition - a kind, personal spoken word - the lack of which leave so many feeling lonely even in the midst of thousands.

Oh well...  Loneliness can be a palpable thing at Christmas, but there is also the brilliance of hope, the enormity of the Gift we have been given, the Grace of what can be, and the Peace that comes from being sure of the Creator.  Opening the door and letting that light fill the dark, sad, empty places - that is what we need to be about.