Advent 4

Wow!  Advent four.  The fourth Sunday of Advent.  The time of preparation is almost over.  Mary is MISERABLE (terrified, tired, sick of the stupid donkey).  The parties and pageants and festivities are almost over.  Wait? What?

People, why do we celebrate Christmas before Christmas?  I saw someone giving twelve days of Christmas gifts on the days leading up to Christmas.  Ack!  The twelve days of Christmas are the days between Christmas and Epiphany when we celebrate Christmas (she says sadly).

Ok, Advent lovers meeting adjourned.

During this season of preparation I have refused to shop, wrap or run.  I am determined to make Advent a season of preparation, but...some things just have to be done.  Like make yummy treats.  Let's call them Advent treats.

Ok, ground rules aside, this year for Advent I made these:

They look yummy, right?  Well, they were.  But the original recipe left out the salt.  When I tasted these healthy snacks (they are almonds, so they are healthy).  I was disappointed.  Isn't that sad!  Mostly since I gave them away as gifts.  They weren't bad, but they weren't great.  You could walk by them without undue temptation.  Not what you are looking for in an Advent treat.  So, I added just a little sea salt.  Unfortunately, I am a genius.  They are now satisfactorily tempting.

Just a little salt.

You know, Jesus once called us the salt of the world.  Could it be that the Kingdom of God brings flavor to this world?  Jesus said he came to bring us abundant life.  Abundance and flavor.  Now those are vivid words.  It does not evoke parents shushing their children and polite nods.  I think of radical love.  Stopping and noticing.  Seeing.  Sharing.  Whirling, uncensored joy.  Unguarded.  Unjaded.

Childlike.

May the birth of the Christ bring you abundance and flavor and may you overflow into the world.