Advent: Days Four and Five

The temperature dropped yesterday – just enough to have a slight hint of frost on the meadow near the woods, and to make me glad for my gloves and thick coat. Reading in the woods while the children play isn’t the warmest of activities.

The growing cold and the growing darkness both leave me with the question: what if it just kept going? What if the world kept getting darker and colder, never reaching that pivotal moment when we find the days lengthening slowly once again?

Many people have pointed out that, in the northern hemisphere, Christmas comes at the darkest time of the year. And when things are at their darkest, we remember that Christ, the light of the world, came down. The darkness does not win. The light and the warmth will make their way back. There is hope.