Its a day to celebrate light, as we remember the star that called for inclusion, and Christ who is named Light of the World. We will light our Advent wreath one last time and we will light luminaries outside our door too. Its a day to celebrate guests and remember the role that these strangers had in the story and the part that warmly welcoming them played as The Holy Family opened their door to them and brought them into their house and life. We will chalk our door tonight with a holy blessing for our home and all who come in and go out in 2017. Chalking the door also echoes back to Passover and the many Jewish parents who marked their doors with a sign of protection on that important night. We will also have an apple gallette with a bean hidden in it....that lucky person getting to wear the crown around the house for the rest of the evening, just for fun. And we'll sing a few more carols around the piano and making sure to hit We Three Kings. I'll read the story of the magi's visit at bedtime as fodder for sweet dreams and we'll be off and running towards our New Year, kissing the holiday season goodbye and looking on towards Lent.
I love the church calendar, the way it pulls me into history, the way it marks our whirling round and round and ties our revolutions into sacred time. I love the reminders to tell these stories to my children, to focus on things like blessing our home and remembering light in our lives. I love the cultural habits that bring gentle little traditions to our life and maybe even a sense of who our people are ancestrally.
Epiphany Song
On this day of eureka,
Bright ideas, lit by starlight
Infuse amongst us like
The fragrant smoke of incense
Let us know clearly.
There is an open door with a
Blessing sifting onto the heads
That enter, like chalk dust
Filtering down in a beam of sun,
Let us love each soul.
We look for the exotic among us,
The sage voices of other lands,
People baring their hearts of gold
Hands fragrant with scents of love.
Let us seek freshness.
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| The prettiest pastry we ate this year, inspiration for our Epiphany pastry! |
Thank you for the reminder to welcome light and strangers into our lives even in the midst of darkness. I enjoyed reading how you celebrate Epiphany with your family.
ReplyDeleteThis is a beautiful post. I took down the decorations today too, remembering the good times in these past weeks, and this joyful story of the visitors who came and were welcomed. I love the poem and this opening: "On this day of eureka," Indeed it was. Thanks for reminding about all the traditions.
ReplyDeleteCarlie, it is good to make your acquaintance on the Feast of the Epiphany. We have celebrated this day for years and were going to invite guests for one last visit to our Christmas house but unfortunately, my son and I came down with a virus that has left us exhausted. I thank you for inviting us readers into your house and celebrating with a poem that resonated with me, especially the lines:
ReplyDeleteThere is an open door with a
Blessing sifting onto the heads
That enter, like chalk dust
Filtering down in a beam of sun,
Let us love each soul.
Enjoyed your post, Carlie, and the grace behind it, the "blessing sifting onto heads" and the "hands scented with love" (and that is one beautiful pastry!)
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful prayer for the new year! I love the idea of blessing sifting onto the heads that enter your home! I think you should print this one out and frame it and hang it by the front door!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful post, Carlie! I love your rich family Epiphany traditions, and the way you touch on so many of the treasures of Epiphany in your poem. Hope you had a marvelous Epiphany celebration yesterday!
ReplyDeleteThis is the first year I'd heard of the chalking of the door, and since I heard about it, I've seen it everywhere. I love the chalkdust in your poem - perfect.
ReplyDelete