A Foundational Gift
Socks and underwear; that’s the “go to” gift for someone who has everything. It has been for ages! My mother loves to tell the story about the gift of underwear I got for my fourth birthday. I loved it so much, that rather than deciding which pair to wear first I put them all on at once! While I’ve outgrown that impulse, I still love practical, useful gifts to give and receive. Our children have all learned to appreciate that kind of gift too, so every year a personal, foundational gift is found and wrapped for each of them. If I happen to find hand knitted wool socks, with a reinforced toe and heel, with a little bit of nylon spun into the wool, I know I’ll be making someone’s day. Boring necessities perhaps, but exactly what makes a difference for so many who would never give that gift to themselves. How much we so often take for granted!
Foundational also for a fulfilling life is a sense of hope, or an optimistic outlook, if you want a more modern phrase. Hope is at the core of the Christian story! Earlier this week, as I snuggled the baby born in Canada to a Syrian family who’ve made New Glasgow their home, I could not help but think of the hope wrapped up in that little bundle. This child, unlike his siblings has never known the terror of the night, the sense of danger that comes from outrunning bombs or finding safe cover, the reality of growing up in a refugee camp, or the denial of adequate education or health care. His life, full of potential and possibility, is the epitome of hope!
Hope, born in a baby; one born into love, for the purpose of love! Is this story beginning to resonate?
The story which unfolds in a myriad of ways at this time of year, is best told when it focusses on the foundational gifts a child brings. As adults, we long to feel the delight and mystery that accompanies Christmas morning, but as a child, the sense that there is something more important than what is under the tree is equally important. Neatly tucked into the foundational story of our faith is the promise of divine, human love, God among us. It comes with the birth of a child. It is so generic, that everyone can understand it, and yet so personal that you can wear it next to your skin and know that everything fits better and works better and feels better with this gift.
A faith for today wrapped in that gift of newborn love, in preparation for living the great story, this month, next month and into the new year. As advent looms, as the shopping ramps up, may we be mindful of those essentials, in the tangible and intangible ways we give and receive the message of God among us.