Shameful

Oh dear. After spending all day in bed asleep to try to combat pain, I drag myself out to go pick up Claudia from school. I have on the leggings and top (inside out) that I have been wearing in bed, my hair has been liberally waxed and hairsprayed yesterday and then slept on. I am only grabbing the girl so I don't brush anything or even put shoes on. When I get to the school I noticed an unusual amount of activity and realise that Parents' evening is in full swing and I have forgotten. So I sneak into the classroom 25 minutes late, shoeless and unkempt. At least she had better marks than I was expecting.

Family Time

Christmas is a time set aside for family in this modern world. All the joys of seeing relatives that live far away, the looks on faces when big news is shared, the looks on faces when Aunt Mildred’s turkey is served....

Times may have changed but people haven’t, and Jesus’ family was no different to yours and mine. The family gathering prior to the first Christmas sounded a lot like a typical year chez Bodsworth:

First, you have to get past the door. Aunty Alison/Gramma/Weird Uncle Thomas is waiting... In Mary’s case, Elizabeth is guarding the portal with arms outstretched. Reunion, love, gladness, joy and excitement.

Then; one of the kids is in trouble. Massive scandal, cover up plan needs hatching. Both women are as happy as can be about their news, but nothing brings family together like unity in the face of adversity. Strength, trust, guidance and peace.

After dinner, the fun starts. Mary and Elizabeth are so happy that Mary starts singing. It’s a shame that Zachariah in the corner is ill and can’t join in, but clapping along is just as important! Fellowship, worship, thankfulness and encouragement.

And what would a family do be without the epic argument? Tradition states that Elizabeth’s baby is to be called Zechariah, a strong family name. Nope, says Liz, he’s a John. I can imagine how long that one lasted before Zechariah lost patience and wrote his final answer. My family is full of strong minded people and old traditions. These gatherings are a time for respecting and remembering what made us great, what ties us together. But we must also look forward to our futures, new family members, new ties and eventually, new traditions. Independence, experience, wisdom and innovation.

Our families stress us out. They yell at us, kick us out, bribe us in, tell us what to do and disown us when we do it. But most of all, they love us. They want to help build us and brace us and show us off to the world.

So you might not love Christmas pudding, you might not think Johnny made the best choice in his hairdo or his wife and you would really rather little Greta kept her sticky fat fingers to herself, but you know that deep down you would move Heaven and Earth to be with them and they would cover for you whilst you did it.

Eat much. Drink much. Give much. Pray much. Sing much and hug much.

Merry Christmas!

The Bishop Of Myra

Today is St. Nicholas’ day! 6th December is still the main day for gift-giving and merry-making in much of Europe. Many feel that simple gift-giving in early Advent helps preserve a Christmas Day focus on the Christ Child. Saint Nick himself has quite the split personality, having evolved over the years to fit in with all sorts of different traditions. In his mortal life he was a Greek bishop noted for his Christian spirit of giving. One legend tells of his throwing three bags of gold through a window to rescue the girls there from a life of poverty. The coins landed in the socks and shoes laid out by the fire to warm. This, along with his generous reputation, probably led to the tradition of asking him for gifts, specifically in a hung stocking. Unfortunately, some might say, the round bags of gold have morphed into oranges in most peoples stockings nowadays! 

Santa Claus as we know him is largely thanks to the poem ‘The Night Before Christmas’, which describes him in fair detail, and of course Coca-Cola for giving him his red suit. In order to get round all the children in the world on Christmas Eve this year, he will have to travel 221 million miles at an average speed of 1279 miles a second, 6,395 times the speed of sound. For all those of us who are exhausted just rushing around getting ready for Christmas, that is a sobering thought!

Making music

Claudia is knocked out on the sofa with a temperature of 40.1. They couldn't get hold of me from school yesterday so she spent the day under the table asleep. I have three problems:
1. I have repeatedly given them updated mobile phone numbers. They have mine, her father's, her grandmother's and a friend authorized to pick her up. Why can't they call any of them? They called the house phone.
2. How much of a problem would it be to have a sick bay? We had one at all the schools I attended. It doesn't have to be much more than a cupboard with a campbed in!
3. She won't let me practise my xaphoon today. :'(