We are in a season of gifts, given and received. Thanksgiving Day kicked it off, then the next major celebrations of Hanukkah and Christmas pick up the same theme. Jewish tradition celebrates a major victory centered on the temple, while for Christians, Christmas celebrates the unimaginable gift of God becoming human.
For me personally, this year the months leading to these times of societal celebrating brought times of bittersweet thanksgiving. Between 8/3 and 11/18 I lost two younger sisters to death’s embrace, but the moments of sadness were decorated with ones of joy. Those who provided the joy were the friends, coworkers, neighbors, and healthcare people who told stories about the gift each of my sisters was to them.
Pat and Pam were extremely different from each other, so the stories their friends told were also quite different, but all showed how both my sisters gave and gave again to the people who crossed their paths. Whatever form the giving was in, it was lifelong and integral to the persona of each of them.
For me the holiday season has brought all this into a special focus. I started reflecting on the many wonderful people who have planted treasures in my own life, or even became treasures themselves. This parade of memories elevated the reality of how often God’s presence in our daily life emerges in full view if only we pay attention at the moment, or at least spend time later reflecting on these momentary miracles. Each one creates a daily Christmas when God steps into human view, helping us to see Infinite Love clothed as an ordinary person.
Sometimes these gifts are not wrapped in a way that appeals to us. One could look like a cranky old man, another a stressed-out sales clerk, still another a driver rushing dangerously through traffic. Behind each of these, however, is the hidden Jesus hoping we see through the façade of weakness to find the divine that lives inside. While on earth, Jesus himself carried different appearances, many of which turned people against him. From a needy infant, a searching teenager, or a rebellious citizen, he was still God-made-man, and when we are in our own dark spaces, he still lives within us.
Once a year these universally celebrated events of gift giving present a great chance to refresh our ability to appreciate the gifts that daily fill our life. Jonathan L. Hule said it well: “A wonderful gift may not be wrapped as you expect.” May each of us grow in the awareness of God’s never-ending incarnation within and around us. Shalom!
