Try A Little Tenderness

It’s true, what they say about Christmas being for children. At least in part that’s true. I just returned from spending the weekend with my sweet grand babies so their parents could take some time away. We baked Christmas cookies with lots of sprinkles and watched a Christmas cartoon and marveled at their beautiful tree - there in all of its glory, behind a gate they’ve constructed to keep the very adventurous almost one year old from pulling it over. The two and a half year old does an excellent version of Jingle Bells, complete with a big finish!

This week I’ve finished decorating my home for Advent and Christmas. My son, Greg, has patiently endured my ponderings and indecision, helping to hang all the things and take them down and move them and hang them again.

The main tree is one of the artificial ones – the one Bruce and I bought last year to put in our bedroom. It’s not very tall, as it was purchased to sit in a dormer window and it’s flocked, which was a new way to go for us. But it was beautiful in our bedroom, glowing softly on both us and through the small window for passers by.

Here, this year, it sits in the living room, glowing brightly, sparsely decorated with antique ornaments, most of which I found at a local antique shop last year and a few of which are

from my childhood. There are a few garlands of stars fashioned out of old books, which is a lovely and new adornment. This tree has been unexpectedly pressed into service as the main tree and is doing an admirable and beautiful job of it.

I call her my tender tree. She feels tender, as though she’s holding all of the things that this season is bringing with it. And she’s beautiful at the same time – not resplendent or glorious. She is tender.

She’s exactly right for this year.

My wish for you, dear ones, is that whatever you are carrying, you are able to carry tenderly. Or that someone is carrying it with you. Shouldering it when it gets heavy.

This is how I’m planning to walk through these holy days – one tender moment at a time.