Mary's Musings: Season of Hope

By Mary Bridges, chaplain

“Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.” — Jonas Salk

You will be reading this issue of Community Matters in the first part of December, during the season of Advent, which begins Sunday, Nov. 28.

In the past, the color of our Advent season was purple. Some time ago it changed to blue. Personally, I love this change. Advent is a time of anticipation and hope. Light blue is associated with health, healing, tranquility, understanding and softness. Dark blue represents knowledge, power and integrity. Blue is also seen as the color of hope and healing. Nature is filled with blue: the sky and the water in our oceans, lakes, ponds and streams. Before God created the world, it was “void and without form and covered in water” (Genesis 1:1-10).

I would like to propose that this year we think of December as our “blue month” and fill our world with hope and healing. Merriam-Webster gives this definition for hope: “desire accompanied by expectation of or belief in fulfillment.” These past two years have been challenging for our entire world. This year, let us look for ways to express hope in our Christmas greetings, decorations and even gift-giving. This can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish.

This year I have a new house to decorate. I’m going to use my Advent wreath and the color blue to focus on the words of the season: HOPE, PEACE, LOVE and JOY. May the blue of Advent remind us of the water of our baptism and may the words of Advent bring a positive change to our world. Merry Christmas to one and all!

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