A Templar Advent Calendar

Kynara54leddon (11-20-07)

Most people are familiar with the traditional "Advent Calendar"...a festive holiday picture with special holiday treats and greetings concealed behind little windows cut in the picture... With one window for each day of Advent, the days until Christmas are marked off by a sweet surprise and growing anticipation.

This year, I would like to commend to your consideration a new kind of Advent Calendar...a "Templar" Advent Calendar.

In this calendar there will still be candy and gifts to mark the holiday, the sweet anticipation of Christmas and it's joy; but instead of opening tiny windows to find gifts for ourselves, we open a window in the world with a small act of kindness we do for others. Perhaps one day we put a little extra in the Bell Ringer's pot, and the next we buy a can of food for the food bank. A donation here, an act of unconditional love there...as we write them down on our calendar, it will soon be decorated, not with glitter, candy and ribbon...but with the Gifts of the Spirit.

On Christmas Eve, when all is quiet, it will be the time to wrap our Advent Calendar as a gift and present it to...ourselves. For this is not the kind of gift we give someone else, but that we give to that indwelling spirit of Love that All that resides in all of us. I hope you will join me.

Bauceant...