O Little Town......

The first week of Advent is coming to a close.  For me, it started on Saturday when we attended The Singing Christmas Tree at Snyder Memorial Baptist Church.  I had wanted to go for a long time but had never gotten around to it. “The Yearning” was the title of their cantata.  What a concise way to summarize the season before Advent…to encapsulate all that the first candle signifies.  What an impressive effort by so many people to point to the manger and the cross; hundreds of voices on one stage! It really was wonderful. So many people must come together year after year and put forth such a great effort to pull off something of that scale. Yet, as the cantata ended and we all stood to join in with the majestic Hallelujah Chorus, my thoughts wandered back to my little church and my little town.  “People Working Together”.  That is our town motto but when we work together, it doesn’t quite look like that.  

On Monday, we went to our town Christmas tree lighting. There were about fifty cars scattered across a dirt parking lot.  Kids were running around. Families were huddling together. Our light came from streetlights, a few headlights and a basic spotlight. All we do is sing a few carols, hear a thought from the pastor, say a prayer, plug in the Christmas tree, enjoy a visit with our very own Papa and Mama Claus - they live here all year long! They just dress differently in December. Then we hug the ones we haven't seen for a while and go to the town hall to eat snacks. Some years, we also watch our mayor and commissioners get sworn in. But, really....it is more than that. There is a unique Spirit present at that Christmas tree lighting. We are always reminded of how much we have and how much we care for each other. And when those lights come on, we are told to look at them as often as possible and remember that no matter how dark the season might seem, there is always hope.

This year, the choir from Falcon Children’s Home sang a medley of carols. Most of them are teenagers. The accompaniment came from a CD and portable stereo that strained to provide just enough volume for the occasion. It lasted for about 7 minutes. Their pitch wasn’t always perfect but the moment was. There was a lot of joy....even if, for some, it was was little cautious. There was a lot of sincerity. There was a lot of reality and there is beauty in that....even if it is sometimes strange and austere.

I stood there swallowing tears and trying to sing Christmas carols. Those kids - I know some of their stories. For some of them to be able to access any hope, love, joy or peace at all is a miracle in and of itself.  And, as I thought of that, my mind wandered back through thirty-five years worth of faces that I have seen singing in that same choir…in this same little town…. this little town that tries to be like a nest to these young ones --- some of us trying to offer shelter ---- others trying to give them their space --- all of us hoping that one day they will all learn to fly.  Sometimes we feel like we are doing a pretty good job of it. Other times, we know we have fallen so short.  Mostly, we just hope and wonder.

As I stood there hearing “our” kids sing so boisterously - my eyes fell on one particular smiling face. That same face had been marked with almost tangible pain a year ago. As I watched her shine a little bit, I thought, “Falcon is like Bethlehem.  It is small, plain and sometimes overrun with people who are looking for bread of one kind or another. But, Falcon is also blessed to have that honor."

  At times, all we can seem to offer the seekers feels far from adequate or even appropriate – but it is given, nonetheless...and sometimes (shamefully) in an almost perfunctory way. In the Christmas story, Falcon would probably not be one of the three kings coming to offer the Christ child extravagant gifts. Instead, we are more like the distracted, over-extended Innkeeper - making room, hoping there will be enough for everybody and praying that it will all work out okay somehow in the end. 

This is our town – our little town....and I love it. It's not much but the lights are on.

“Oh come to us, abide with us, our Lord, Emmanuel.”