There’s nothing like a school night obligation to throw your day into a spin. When your day with the kids doesn’t end until after 8pm, it usually means several things were missed. Dinner possibly, Chores certainly. That glass of wine that helps make the season bright. But, you come and cram into a very warm church. Not warm in the chestnuts roasting way. Warm in the “what is the fire code max” for body heat way. You sweat and you listen because you cannot see. Nope. Not from anywhere in the church. Pretty much no matter where you are sitting, the view is terrible and so you sit. You go over lists in your minds. Gifts still to get. The charity work for the season needs to be calendared. The office party...do you really need something new to wear that you don’t wear to work at least once a week? Cause if so, this would have been your window to shop for something. But, here you sit in the church pew, which is rough on the end of the day back. So, an old outfit will do for that party but it would be nice to….finally, your kid’s class is up.
So, you walk to the front and assume the position crouching or kneeling or generally angering one joint or another to be in position to hear and see what you came to see. Your baby, in some stage of the word, takes the stage and with the class, proclaims the joy of the season with sincerity or innocence or embarrassment or actual joy and you forget all the lists and all the pains and all the to dos. Whether it’s your first time and your wee angel comes in like a line of holy ducklings or maybe the middle grades and you can’t believe how big they now seem. Or, the elder statesmen who have grown up here at the Christmas concert and are about to make you a high school parent. Your two minutes of holiday cheer is up and you resume the position in the terrible view pew.
But, instead of ruminating on the many musts of the season, hopefully your heart turns to your kid and this job as a parent. The biggest job in the world. Collecting them at the end of the night rivals the worst holiday O’Hare airport crowd crush, but as you walk down the halls holding hands, I overhear the love. “Did you have fun?” YES! “That was amazing you guys did the best!” “Did you hear my voice? I did...I loved it!” So much love and sweetness. Coming together to celebrate a two minute performance at this time of year reminds all of us why it is special. Special to sit and listen to the voices that will deepen and change and eventually, move away. Special to anticipate their return for the holidays each year, if we are lucky. Special to look back and remember the sounds of the Corpus Christi Christmas Concert and feel warm that you showed up and you celebrated. The season is about love, and you showing up is the most loving act of all.