A Different Sort of Waiting

Advent is about waiting, anticipation, and preparation. Waiting for the birth of a Baby, anticipating the Gift of Love, and preparing room in my heart and life for this great Gift.

This year my Advent has been highjacked by a different sort of waiting. I am literally waiting for light, and electricity. I am growing impatient, cranky, and much more full of self-pity than I care to admit. I know there's a sermon in this somewhere . . .but I'm too annoyed to find it.

There are still about 3000 of us without power, 12 days after the storm. We are tired of filling generators, using laundramats and friends' homes for showers and laundry, tired of "camp-style" meals, tired of the generator's noise and gas odors, tired of the inconvenience. Even though we know we are relatively safe, relatively warm, and not going hungry, we are inconvenienced enough to be cranky and annoyed. Many of us have had to put our holiday plans on hold --- no baking, no special meals, no lights on the tree or in the windows of our homes.

If I could just focus on the coming of God's Light, instead of human's light, I'd be a happier woman.