The Sleep before the Spring

So we watched a good short video in class yesterday.

Like it or not, we are getting close to Christmas again. There are a lot of things I personally enjoy about this time or year. I like the cold and the snow, and the going inside and warming myself by the fire or having a cup of hot chocolate. I like sitting around the living room with a good book while there is a snow storm outside. I like the crisp air, the blanket of white, the season where the land seems to sleep before it comes alive again in the spring. I value the celebration of our quiet hope that comes in the Incarnation.

There are a few things about this time of year I could do without though. The shorter days, I find it harder to wake up in the morning without the early sunlight. I don't always care for the way my hands loose all feeling after doing chores on the farm because its so cold and my "circulation" isn't very good. But probably most of all it unsettles me when I'm walking down the street on November 1st and find that suddenly all the Halloween pumpkin grimaces and candies have been replaced by smiling snowmen and "gift ideas". I understand that people want to celebrate, decorate and give, but it is the way this is propagated and commercialized... it seems like we are in a sense selling our souls and buying something else instead.
I think that inwardly I find greater value in the winter season than all that currently detracts from it, but I feel the need to reiterate some of what we talked about in our class discussion yesterday.

We were talking about globalization and the impact of the dominant system of capitalism that our western economies and lives function on. The short video we watched in class cuts to the issue of consumerism and gives a brief look at how unbalanced our spending habits are when compared to some of the real needs of people around the world, especially in light of why and how Jesus came (and sadly how this consumerism is especially prevalent during the season of Christmas). Think about it. Just as encouragement to live simply, spend time meaningful and learn how to support habits in our society/culture that either create inequalities around the world or ignores them. Here's the link to the 2008 video on youtube and a link to the site, the movement is called Advent Conspiracy:
2008 video & Advent Conspiracy Site

"We don't know how to be generous if it isn't tied to commercialism..."

How true is this statement, in my life, your own life and in the wider context of our communities, nations and world we live in? I realize that not everyone links generosity to giving money, or buying something for someone else. But for me the underlying idea here is that our society's economic structure has an influence on our relationship and even our morality. I'm not making a call for everyone to react dramatically and drastically change the way they spend money, though maybe this is what should happen. But think about. How can we live a life that does not support the habit of materialism and easy gratification that is entrenched in our Western culture? Gratification. It is so easy to get something, anything in our culture, to be instantly gratified. Shouldn't it be that our relationships and morality have the greater influence on our society's economic structure, and not the other way around?

Let's not sell our souls or put them to sleep during the winter. I want mine warmed by the fire of hope, joy and love.