I live in Chicago, where it gets dark awfully early this time of year. My daughter likes to remind me how much she doesn’t like the dark. She can’t play outside after school because it’s already dark and she also still finds the dark a little scary. On our drives in the dark, we start playing a new game: look for the lights! How many houses can we spot with lights? Can we spot any Christmas trees inside someone’s house? Should we drive down the streets with light up snowflakes? Yes, it’s dark, but it is also full of light.
Mary Oliver notes in her poem ‘Don’t Hesitate’, “joy is not meant to be a crumb.” Joy should not be leftovers - it should be everything to us. And today’s gospel is quite clear on what will bring God joy: to see people love and share with one another in abundance, to give more than what is asked for and to take no more than we need. In a time where joy is equated with excess, we are reminded that that excess should come with giving and not receiving. For so many, recognizing joy is nearly impossible because they truly do not have enough. Excess is something they can’t imagine because what they know is scarcity. Joy is not meant to be a crumb, but for some, joy may come from crumbs. We are not to despair at what we don’t have, but for those who are able, our joy, our light and our warmth are to be shared. Darkness may not be what we think of when we imagine joy. But darkness does offer us the opportunity to bring more light into the world, especially those who need it most desperately.
This week we are invited to rejoice! In the midst of dark days and times that feel dark, joy looks different. Part of joy is choosing joy and learning to recognize it. Yes, I drive home from work in the dark. But that Chicago skyline shines a lot prettier in the dark. Christmas lights also aren’t nearly as sparkly in the daylight. The dark also reminds me to slow down and to be more present. This time of year, I have every reason to crawl under cozy blankets and watch movies with my kids. We watch in hope for snow in the forecast so that we can make our way to the sledding hill nearby. The world never quiets quite like it does when it snows. I don’t care if it’s dark or if we track wet shoes into the house because eventually spring will come and we can clean up the mess. We might see the suffering around the world and in our communities, but we can respond to God’s invitation to rejoice by finding ways to believe that we can find the light in the darkness and insist that there be justice and joy instead of suffering. We do not have to live so that we search for joy despite the suffering. God comes to us as light in the dark so that in this season, we do not see the joy and the light despite the darkness, but because of it.
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