Finding the Christmas Spirit

This year of scripture study for "Come, Follow Me" has not been the most inspirational.  I appreciate the pioneers and Joseph Smith and what they collectively did to move the work forward, but I have sorely missed reading scriptures about the Savior, whether from the Old or New Testaments, or the Book of Mormon.  Usually I come into the Christmas season feeling well-prepared in my closeness to the Savior, but this year, I most certainly was not feeling that way.  So, I set some goals.

1.  Catch up on the blog.  This probably doesn't have much to do with the Savior, but it's a good goal to have before 2021 ends.

2.  Read "Jesus the Christ" during the month of December.

3.  Read the four gospels.

Along with these goals, I want to just do anything I can to bring Jesus back into my life.  And it's funny--with goals like this, opportunities just kind of fall in my lap.  Something as insignificant as signing up to give someone in the Detroit River Branch "a picture of Jesus to hang on the wall" can turn into an experience of perusing so many different pictures of the Savior and his life, all great reminders of what he did and how I need to follow his example.  But this weekend was really a terrific start to the season in general.

Thursday night, I showed up for my normal Thursday night temple shift.  Women are now allowed to man the recommend desk (a change that will seem so obvious to generations in the future), and with the instruction, we have been encouraged to remain reverent at the desk.  So many times, groups of workers will congregate at the desk and talk, and I will admit that as a patron, it's not exactly what I want to see when I first walk in the temple.  So there I was sitting at the desk, attempting to be reverent, and I pulled out the New Testament to continue my reading of the gospels.  I came to this passage in Luke 1 where an angel is telling Zacharias who his son, John, will be:

13 But the angel said unto him, ^aFear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a ^bson, and thou shalt call his name John.
14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.
15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither ^awine nor strong drink; and he shall be ^bfilledwith the ^cHoly Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.
16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.
17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of ^aElias, to turn the hearts of the ^bfathers to the children, and the ^cdisobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people ^dprepared for the Lord.

John frequently feels badly about his name and the connotation that it has with porta-potties being called "Johns"--like, he can't let it go that people teased him about his name as a child.  But after reading this passage, I was prompted to share it with John, hoping that in some small way he would feel comfort in the name he was given.  I can't help but notice the similarities between John the Baptist and my own John.  Such good men.  In that moment, if for no other reason, I was so thankful that I had felt the need to read the gospels again.

Months ago, the University Musical Society sent out its annual email, announcing its subscription year.  I have never bought a subscription to a musical organization, but after looking at the calendar of upcoming performances, I felt it was a good way to spend my money.  I mean, I already buy tickets to Messiah each year (yes, it's technically Messiah, and not THE Messiah), and with a subscription, I could get better seats for a cheaper price.  So I bought four tickets.

Then, in October, I saw that Hilary Hahn was coming to play with the Detroit Symphony.  I like the DSO because Orchestra Hall is easy to access, the seats are comfortable and roomy for John's failing knees, and the programs are always well balanced.  I bought tickets to see her as well.

Turns out, Hannah randomly was given the day off so I bought a last minute ticket for her as well to see Hilary.  Our family first fell in love with Hilary Hahn when we were blown away by the soundtrack to The Village, one of my favorite movies of all time.  She was given first credit after the movie ended, and so began our love affair.  She is down to earth and plays everything transcendentally.  Really, if God gives specific gifts to specific people, she was given the gift to play the violin better than anyone else who has ever lived or who will ever live.  She's fun to follow on social media too, because she's never beyond having fun or making fun of herself.  It doesn't hurt that she's pea-sized and cute as a button.

Ms. Hahn played the Dvorak violin concerto, and there were times that it didn't even look like she was playing because the notes sounded so difficult but she looked like she was just warming up with a scale or two.  She plays everything effortlessly.  I don't give many standing ovations, but I couldn't get up fast enough, and I was there clapping the loudest to get her back out for a third bow.  And what a surprise when she picked up the microphone and began talking to us.  I quickly turned on the voice memo app on my phone.  She spent five minutes talking about grief and how we all process it in reference to the Oxford school shooting that had occurred only three days prior.  She felt that we all had been given a chance to be together to grieve together, so she proceeded to play the Andante movement from Bach's Sonata for Violin, No. 2 in a minor, BWV 1003.  I wept.  Hannah wept.  It was a moment when time stopped, and music once again became something more than just notes from an instrument.

I know that this experience wasn't directly related to the Savior, and yet the spirit was so strong during it all.  Knowing that there is a God who put music on this earth, recognizing Ms. Hahn's gift, silently praying for the families affected by the tragedy, and feeling the hope in humanity.  It was just perfect.

On Saturday, we headed in for our normal temple shift.  However, it was my first time back in the office since before COVID.  To say I was a little bit nervous would be an understatement.  However, so many things have changed for the better--it's just a really loving experience now, and I'm so happy I agreed to continue serving just so I could see it get better.  One of the funnest parts for me is that I am now officially called as a church service missionary (yes, anyone who works in the office receives this calling), and along with that comes an actual missionary name tag.  I can hardly express the feelings of putting on that name tag, and as I texted my kids from the temple locker room, I know it doesn't have the miles or the sacrifice behind it like theirs did, but I like to think that I'm joining the missionary "cool kids" club :-)

As we drove home, we watched the BYU orchestra's annual Christmas celebration online, and it sure was fun seeing Glo sitting first chair, second violin, the key word being "see".  Yes, we could finally see her in the section, and it was especially fun because she was directly behind the soloist!

Then, Sunday rolled around.  Hannah came to stake conference with John and me, and then afterwards we headed to Hill Auditorium for Messiah.  I know it isn't for everyone--a lot of people find it boring, or they go because it's an annual tradition--but for me, it's the perfect welcome experience for the Christmas season.  I read that the librettist for Messiah was actually only of moderate skill level and had a supersized ego, but golly, there is no better collection of scriptures about the Savior.  The first part is about prophecies, the second part is about the Savior's actual birth, and the third part is about the resurrection.  It was amazing for me to consider how many people prophesied his birth--I mean, how can he NOT be the Savior of the world when every single thing came to pass?  And to think of how his life and death will continue to be the saving grace for the world through eternity?  I'm so grateful.

After we came home (with John and Hannah both well rested from sleeping through the first half....), I asked if we could watch "Jesus of Nazareth", the mini-series from the 1970s, starring Olivia Hussey as Mary.  I believe if anyone looks like what I picture Mary as, it's Olivia Hussey, and how she plays Mary as well is just perfect.  And once again I was reminded that just because we're doing what's right, Heavenly Father doesn't step in and make our lives perfect.  I mean, couldn't Mary have had a room in the inn for the night? Couldn't someone have stopped Herod from killing all the children? Couldn't the Savior of the world have been saved on the cross?  There's a plan for all of us, and like the Savior, we must trust in Heavenly Father, that he knows what's the best course for us in our life.  I love Him.  I'm so grateful for Him.

Merry Christmas!