By Barb Arland-Fye
Neighbors in our cul-de-sac have taken down their Christmas lights but ours will glow through Christmas Time, which concludes Jan. 13 with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord.
Our family has embraced the season more fully since I began studying the origins and evolution of Christmas Time for a mini retreat at our parish. Even so, letting go of traditions and habits that respond to the secular world’s celebration of Christmas has been challenging.
After seeing our neighbors’ Christmas lights illuminating the neighborhood early in December, I began pestering my husband Steve about putting up Christmas lights around our deck. Our house is visible from the highway and is in the center of the cul-de-sac, so it seems a bit unwelcoming when the house appears dark with lights shining all around it.
Steve hung the Christmas lights, but our house remained dark from the outside until he could correct stubborn problems concerning faulty lights and timer. Unintentionally, that meant our blue and white lights didn’t begin glowing until just before Christmas Eve, the beginning of Christmas Time.
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