as it is wont to do
Amidst the hope and the peace
and the joy and the love
proclaimed by the Advent candles
grief snuck in
unbidden
unwelcome.
I want to push her away
ignore her
push her far down
into the recesses of my soul
where she can languish
until she decides to play nice.
But she keeps on surprising me
with her force and her persistence
with her ability to make me confront
what ails me
or at least to consider
the reality of pain
being present
when all is good
and right
and life-giving.
To follow a call
does not grant immunity
from the pain of loss
and the vagaries
of transition.
And the comfort God promises
is slow to appear.
But maybe wholeness is found
in acknowledging, not denying
in welcoming, not ignoring
in sitting with grief as a companion
through whom God intends
to reveal purpose.
And perhaps healing will come
when the tasks of mourning are done.
In God's time
the landscape of loss
will be transformed
into newness of life.
The God of every transition
calls us, not to easy paths
but to paths
that will help us grow.
And that promise
is the hope and the peace
and the love and the joy
of this season.
Thanks be to God.
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