Preparing Him Room: Decorating with Peace and Purpose For Advent
Are you a Ralph Lauren or a Jo March Christmas decorator? At least that seems to be the discussion currently online and in marketing; I even used it to plug my own small Christmas market earlier this week—except by saying I have both themes in my online shop. Before we get caught up in the seasonal, ever-changing ornamental themes though, let’s take a step back even further.
Christmas as a season is supposed to emanate peace, joy, nostalgia, and all the warm, snuggly, glowing feelings. We could say it’s because the past couple centuries of marketing have done an excellent job (and that we’re now losing it because marketing has gone too far toward the fast fashion, busy side), but the real baseline is that Christmas has always been about peace and joy because it celebrates the coming of the Redeemer and the imminent Salvation of mankind.
Originally marketing had no place in the days leading up to Christmas, and, in fact, the Church has always proffered Advent as an entire season overflowing with peace and purpose instead. So before we skip over to the buzz of celebration, let’s immerse in slow, quiet preparations in the darkened days leading up to the burst of midnight light that heralds the Infant Jesus.
The Advent Corner
Every year I like to start with what I call the Advent Corner. I pick one spot in my house that gets cleaned to perfection and set up with something of Advent or Advent-to-Christmas decor. Perhaps it’s a framed artwork on the wall like Dolci’s “Adoration of the Shepherds” that gets a garland above and a glow from candles arranged on the buffet below. Maybe it’s a special creche set up where the figures slowly travel across the room to it while the sheep and shepherds are the only ones in the stable until Christmas Eve. Whatever it is, the simple cleanliness and festive beauty awaken the longing for more holiday in my soul, and eventually I can’t help but clean and decorate every corner of the home over the course of December. No rush, no panic, no weight—it’s just the charm of a slowly growing atmosphere that overtakes the house the way Advent works.
Advent Meditating
Specific intellectual and spiritual fostering brings purpose to the season, which is where special Advent meditations come in. Whether you meditate through the Gospel of Luke bit by bit as a family leading up to Christmas or pick a special book with sections for every day of December, a few quiet minutes of reading helps set the tone of peace and reason for the season. Tan’s Devotion to Our Lord in the Womb, Road to Bethlehem by St. Alphonsus Liguori, or Cluny Media’s Come, Lord Jesus are all wonderful options. For families with younger children, combining a reading of each corresponding story from the Bible along with the Jesse Tree practice is a wonderful option.
The Jesse Tree
The Jesse Tree is making a comeback as of recently. I still remember scribbling on paper circles with pictures for each of the twenty-four days and attaching them to colorful paper to hang on our undecorated Christmas tree during Advent. Each day we would read about that day’s ornament focus in the Bible and then take turns gleefully hanging that day’s ornament up. Counting the ever growing array on the tree was simple, but it heightened our anticipation of Christmas while bringing us through the entire story of Salvation up until the Nativity. Nothing against Advent Calendars if you like them as well, but the Jesse Tree is the original Advent calendar, and, because it is the same every year, it is a much more mom-friendly, feasible large family practice. Whether you buy a simple magnetic one that includes a “tree” like Gather & Pray’s, invest in intricate ornaments to hang from the mantle, or bring your Christmas tree in early and make your own ornaments, it is a beautiful practice.
Decorating Slowly
As Christians there is no need to throw up all the decor on the Saturday after Thanksgiving—if we haven’t already done so as soon as All Saints was over—because we have all of December before Christmas truly hits. In that frame of mind, we can also reuse and hand make; there is no need for new or plastic every year. Build rhythms and tradition to create a sense of belonging, simplicity, and nostalgia. If the same string of lights and framed motif ornaments go on the stairwell and the same throw blanket and candlesticks in the living room, brains and pocketbooks are not a frenzied mess of decision making and budgeting every season. If you crave newness every December, try to find it in creating a new Advent wreath or new garlands from different fruits and greenery and paper that does not keep from year to year. Add something small and lasting each year until over time you have the holiday bower of your dreams.
The Advent Wreath
Finally, we’ve come to our oldest friend, the Advent wreath. Many different countries have many different variations of it, some even including fruit, single candles, and small trees instead of wreaths. In the United States, the most common version is the wreath of greenery (or other aesthetic wreath version) with three purple and one pink candles to be lit one by one on each Sunday of Advent until all four are gleaming. The four candles are respectively named “Hope: the Prophecy Candle” (purple), “Peace: the Bethlehem Candle” (purple), “Joy: the Shepherd’s Candle” (pink) on Gaudete Sunday, and “Love: the Angel’s Candle” (purple). If you have not already purchased wreath candles yet, A Few Random Things has lovely beeswax ones.
This is in no way an all inclusive list of options for Advent, but perhaps that is the point. Pick one corner, one meditation, one homemade craft that can become an heirloom decor piece for future holiday seasons. Peace and purpose—whether you go for a Ralph Lauren or Jo March aesthetic—is the name of the game this year and every year. It’s time to reclaim our traditions and point them where they truly need to focus. In doing so, you’ll end up with the most unexpected but precious holiday season yet.
