I know it’s January and most people have their decorations down – unless you belong to the Orthodox Church. They’re Nativity celebration is today. But that’s beside the point. The point is that most of our Christmas decorations are down, but two lighted garlands will remain in place until mid-February.
The reason is simple. It’s because of the light. Though the hours of daylight are now increasing every twenty-four hours, January is a dark month. The lack of light gets me down. Right now it’s 4:00 in the afternoon and the sun is nearing the western horizon. Once it goes down, so does my energy level. If there’s no light, my body wants to sleep.
In reality, December is a darker month, but with preparation for Christmas, extra activities and extra time spent with family it flies by. But not January. The Christmas tree comes down. The daughter goes back to college. The dog goes to its other home. The hours between meals are interminable as I work off the extra pounds I put on eating my mom’s fabulous Chex mix. The month creeps by.
So every morning when I get up in the dark and every afternoon as the sun starts to set, I turn on the lights in the two sets of garland. The tiny lights shine in the darkness. They shine best in the darkness, bright and piercing.
That truth gives me hope in January when it’s dark. It wakes me up and keeps me going. Sometimes, I think, it even helps me shine.
