My Grown-Up Christmas List
When my children were in elementary school, I enjoyed helping them make (and shorten) their Christmas lists. If we were shopping between the months of January and November and they asked for toys, I would instruct them, “Put it on your Christmas list.” The day after Thanksgiving, they would sit down at the dining room table and engage in the yearly tradition of writing to Santa Claus. Of course, dolls and accessories made the list, and sometimes bikes. As they got older, clothes and electronics were the most requested items. In order not to seem selfish (and I suppose to mitigate my response to the length of their lists) they would ask me, “Mom, what do you want for Christmas?” Sometimes I responded, “Oh, gloves or a cute pair of shoes.” Other times I would tell them I didn’t want anything, but I knew I needed a new laptop or phone, because the one I had was fading fast. In the back of my mind, though, each time they asked, I couldn’t help but think beyond commercial items, look deeper at the world and the people in it, and consider what would truly make Christmas the transformative, joyous event it’s meant to be.
One day, while listening to the radio during the holiday season, I heard a song that summed up my thoughts so perfectly, and it’s been one of my favorites since. The song, "My Grown-Up Christmas List," was composed by David Foster and Linda Thompson-Jenner and appears on Natalie Cole’s 1999 album, The Magic of Christmas. Here are a portion of the lyrics:
“Do you remember me?
I sat upon your knee.
I wrote to you
With childhood fantasies.
Well, I'm all grown up now
Can you still help somehow?
I'm not a child,
But my heart still can dream.
So here's my lifelong wish,
My grown-up Christmas list,
Not for myself,
But for our world in need.
No more lives torn apart,
That wars would never start,
And time would heal all hearts.
And everyone would have a friend,
And right would always win,
And love would never end,
This is my grown-up Christmas list.”
These lyrics speak directly to my heart and capture my prayers for this world. In a letter penned to Santa Claus, the writer reminisces about childhood dreams and wishes and how, even though an adult now, she still wishes and dreams, now not only for herself, but a world in desperate need of healing. The phrase, “No more lives torn apart, and wars would never start, and time would heal all hearts…” reflect a life that has witnessed its share of grief and pain, sadness and despair, not just personally, but communally, in a world that seems beset by evil more and more each day. But, amid this despair, there is hope: “Everyone would have a friend, and right would always win, and love would never end…” Peace is not merely the absence of war, just as love is not merely the absence of hate. Peace is the reconciliation of all creation back to God’s original intent and love is the ultimate concern for all people, evident in right relationships, with God and with all creation. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to be co-laborers with Jesus in this work, to restore true peace and love in creation. Are we engaged in that work daily? How can we be sure our work is not in vain? Will lasting peace and love ever become reality?
Several Advent texts, including Isaiah chapters 11 and 40, Matthew chapter 1-3, and Luke chapter 1-3 proclaim the coming of the Messiah, not as a cosmic Santa Claus, who will grant all our personal wishes, dreams and desires, but as one who will judge righteously and faithfully, and because of him, peace will come upon the earth. Isaiah 11: 6 (NRSV) proclaims, “The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.” This gives me hope, even as I despair about the direction this world seems to be headed, peace in my spirit, even though war abounds across the globe, and joy as I also lament all that is amiss. Though I know the world, my world, is not perfect, I still can announce the coming of the Christ child with joy in my heart, because joy is neither defined by nor limited to life’s present circumstances. Joy is rooted in the eschatological understanding that God is working to redeem this broken world, even if we are unable to perceive it. Joy can be found in the work of co-creating a new world with God, the Holy Spirit, and with Jesus, the One who was sent into the world as Love incarnate. Joy is present in and with me, my community, and communities of faith everywhere who strive together to realize this vision.
As I co-labor with Jesus and fellow disciples, I rest assured that the coming of Jesus, the reign of Jesus, and the redemption of creation will ensure that true peace and love will, one day, be a reality, not just a dream. On that great day, joy will resound throughout the universe, for “everyone will have a friend, right will always win, and love will never end.” This is truly my grownup Christmas list. May it be so.
Amen and ase’.