Happy Holy Days!

One of my favorite holiday treats is cranberry relish, Mom-style. Now I'm not talking about the jellied kind that comes out of a can looking like a log, but the kind that is made with fresh cranberries, an orange and sugar to taste.

However, simple as it may sound, I had quite a frustrating time making my own. I thought it would be a snap with my brand new food processor, but I couldn't get the chopping blade to click into place. Plan B was the blender; it left whole cranberries and big chunks of orange. The mess was getting messier, so I tried the last resort, a mini-chopper, but it didn't work very well, either. The results of my efforts being quite unsatisfactory, I dumped it all into a bowl, added sugar and left it alone for the sugar to soak in.

It's time now to prepare ourselves for our favorite holy day treat, God-style, as we await the coming of the Christ Child. It doesn't matter how we get to the manger; with Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, or with the Wise Men, because the results of our efforts will be quite satisfactory, no matter how messy our lives may seem. And so let us take the time during this Advent season to let God's grace soak in as we live into this holy time in a spirit of joy and anticipation at the birth of the Prince of Peace.