DW is decorating a table for the ward Christmas dinner, and the centerpiece will be one of our Advent wreathes. We think that probably few will understand.
O'l uncle Joe wasn't really into lighting candles for cold long nights. He'd blow out the illumination and get busy banging some fourteen year old fanny.
Or better yet maybe, light one candle on a separate day till you reach all of Brother Young ripe wifey numbers.
BUT my daughter bought me a really nice FARM advent calendar this year that has doors that open like the one on Christmas Vacation. I hated farming, but now I've become obsessed with farms. I guess remembering my childhood.
And she made me another advent calendar years ago with pictures of her twin brother and her on Christmas day for each 24 days. One of my favorite things anyone has ever given me.
I don't even want to put up my tree this year. I did put up the outside lights. I want a smaller tree, but I'm babysitting my boyfriend's dog with my dogs. His dog is a German Shepherd and my little Aveo won't fit the 3 of them to run to Brigham City to pick up one of my trees that I left at my parents' house, so I guess the big tree goes up again. I can't leave his dog here as he might get out (son is here) and he can jump my 6 foot fence. If I lost my boyfriend's dog, OH MY! More for the dog. I hate seeing lost dogs on fb or anywhere.
I don't want snow, but it sure doesn't feel like December here in little Hyrum, Utah.
Mormons don't celebrate either of the penitential seasons, Advent and Lent. They go straight to the payoff without bothering with any of that "remembering your sins" and "making amends" and "self reflection" nonsense.
What was that old Nibley essay? "Work We Must, But the Lunch Is Free"? Turns out they would rather just have the lunch.
I beg to differ. My former bishop when I lived in Germany is from Holland. Today he posted a picture of his Advent wreath.
We still celebrate Advent because it ties us to old friends, European places, a better form of Mormonism, and the fact that my kids will not allow us to not do it. Advent is what kicks off Christmas, no Thanksgiving, for God's sake.
When I was a missionary a married couple who had no children invited us to dinner a couple of times on advent Sundays. They lit the candle after dinner and we sat around talking about our mutual interests, our girlfriends back home, what we were planning on doing in the future, but nothing about the Church much, watching the candles burn with hellatious storms blowing outside. This made a warm impression on me; my wife and I keep an advent wreath and always try to spend a little bit of time relaxing watching a candle burn. We've done it since we were first married a long time ago.
Years before the dubious and temporary conversion to Mormonism we celebrated Advent. One year in particular I watched my mother create an Advent wreath. I always liked opening the doors of a perpetual Advent calendar.