Reach Back

3 Jan

“Snow provokes responses that reach right back to childhood.” ~ Andy Goldsworthy

It is winter.  And, with it, comes the snow.  There are many different groups of people that show themselves in the winter.  There are the snow haters, the snow worshipers, the snow could-care-less people, and on and on.

What they all seem to have in common, though, is the childlike tendency to greet a snowfall with a certain amount of fun.  I’ve seen elderly people stoop down, form a snowball, and throw the snowball at another person.  I’ve seen elderly people plop on the ground and make snow angels.  It is hilarious.  Yet, it seems to beckon us all.

A good snowfall does make us reach right back to childhood.  Oh, it may not last very long.  We might become that “responsible adult” immediately after.  But, for a while, it felt good to act like a kid again, didn’t it?

We are in the midst of the Christmas season.  The season should help us to reach back to our childhood as well.  The rest of the world may have put Christmas away.  The churches, though, are still decorated for another few days as the Christmas season will not end until next week.  We continue celebrating Christmas, singing Christmas hymns at Mass, and thinking about the birth of the Christ Child those years long ago.

Thinking about all of that should renew a deep-seated, childlike joy in our hearts and minds.  Let the Christmas season continue to speak to you of life and love.

FAITH ACTION:  Recall some of the favorite Christmas moments of your youth and thank God for giving you such wonderful memories.