Advent

I can barely believe we've arrived at Advent 2020, still in the darkness of pandemic - a darkness already broken by the desperate attempts at light which I can see from my study window, the people across the road having strung fairly random flashing lights in great irregular loops from their roof. But I always think that at this time of year the darkness of the Scottish winter closes in with awful intent - not so badly, of course, as in Scandinavia or Russia, but differently, here on the very penumbra of Europe. 

Hence our Advent wreath in church, with its different candles lit in order signifying quite specific things (today, for example, the first candle is for the prophets): we need this light, this symbolism, despite our electricity and technology. As for this particular wreath, this year, there is a story which ties it in to the pandemic and its effects on society. One of the services which we've noticed as being badly affected is the post, and one of the deliveries which even now seem to be wandering around the country or lurking in a warehouse is a set of Advent candles. 

If you look at the photo, only one candle is actually new. We lit it today. It was the "spare" candle last year, because every set comes with four purples, one pink, one white, in case some churches balk at the pink one. (If you don't know about all this, and are wildly interested/bored, you can read all about it ...) In theory, one of two sets of candles (you can see desperation here) should arrive tomorrow; if you look at the shortness of the other purple candles you will see why this is important. Our wreath this year was described as "exuberant", and there is a distinct possibility of a conflagration if we have to light any more. I sit closer to it than anyone else - I always have my water bottle. But we love the fact that our greenery is local, cut from trees around the area, the pink berries carefully (and hazardously) gleaned from the golf course - even the suggestion of the pagan peoples who inhabited these places long ago.

Apart from church, I've not been out. I've attended the zoom service to have another sing at the hymns, and the zoom AGM of the congregation. In between, I listened to St John's College Cambridge Advent Carol service. Now I'm strangely hungry, and intend eating, drinking, and watching His Dark Materials. And first I'm going to change from wearing a respectable zoom meeting top to my habitual evening sloppiness. 

And I really need to get back to thinking about Christmas presents ...