ADVENT SEASON IS UPON US

     The time before Christmas is called Advent which means a coming. We have to wait in lines to buy presents. Children have to wait to open them. Stores have to wait to see sales' profits.

     The word Christmas is taken from two words: Christ and mass. It refers to the mass that is held on Christmas Day. The Baby Jesus is put into the manger set that day. The Wise Men statues are still far off because they really didn't arrive until several months later.

     My reflection on Advent is called  "Journey to Bethlehem" from my book Small White Hearts. Here is what I envisioned: 

I see Mary and Joseph walking to Bethlehem.

Mary is riding sidesaddle and is feeling the jolts
Of the bumpy, rut-filled road, but she doesn’t complain. 
Her pregnancy may have delayed them in getting a room.

 Advent is a waiting period.

 Mary and Joseph waited for the birth.

They are far from home and family.
Certainly this is not what the young mother  
Expected for her First Born.

The shepherds heard songs and waited
To sing them to the new parents.
Their songs were not for the world
But for Mary and Joseph’s reassurance.

The animals waited patiently to give loving heat
With their breath to the Newborn
Including the tired donkey Mary rode on.

The Wise Men waited every day.
As they got closer to their destination,
They prayed that the expectancy in their hearts
Would be fulfilled upon seeing Him.