Christmas Found Me

I’m not sure when or where it happened. 

I think it sneaked in at the Longest Night service at the Methodist Church on the evening of December 20.  After Communion, while I was kneeling at the altar praying, the minister anointed my forehead with scented oil and said a short prayer for me.  It wasn’t until I got home after the service that I noticed an unusual fragrance following me around everywhere I went in my apartment.  When it dawned on me it was coming from the oil on my face, I decided not to bathe that night.  It was with great reluctance that I washed my face the following morning!

Or, it could have been at the kennel when I received a phone call from one of our clients telling me that she was on her way over, and to please not leave for lunch until she got there.  She and her puppy, Yogi, roared up the drive just as we were getting ready for our lunch break.  She handed me an envelope and wished me a Merry Christmas.  This surprised me, because I knew she was Jewish.  With a quick hug from her and a lick from Yogi, they were out the door and on their way.  When I opened the envelope, I found a nice Christmas card with a photo of Yogi and $25 inside. 

Maybe it has been all of the Facebook messages I have received this week wishing me a Merry Christmas from friends and family around the world.

Possibly, it was the young man behind me in the Walmart check-out line who struck up a conversation with me about our plans for the holiday with our families.  As I filled my buggy with my sacks of groceries, he smiled and wished me a Merry Christmas.

But truthfully, I think it was Daisy, the little dog I am puppy-sitting with this week.  Because she likes to go for walks, I head out every evening with her for a walk in downtown Monroe.  Friday night we happened across a living nativity on the square, complete with a camel, some donkeys, sheep, and a few bunny rabbits.  Daisy wasn’t particularly interested in the nativity scene, but the “Hallelujah Chorus” was playing through the loud speaker system, and I was caught up in the visual scene and the sounds of the wonderful music.

Somehow, Christmas has found me.  It is very different from any Christmas I have ever encountered, but it is here.

And I am crying.