CHRISTMAS 1993
Dearly Beloved of Christ;
The Feast and Season comes and goes. Mostly too quickly. You will receive this letter before the actual feast. However, you will probably feel that you are already in the midst of it. The secular trappings and the economic whirlwind sweeping through Advent cause late twentieth century Christians to stumble over the twenty-fifth of December. They fall abruptly into the pre-New Year's mode. It feels like a sigh of relief. Generally speaking we are glad it is over. Our attention can focus on the New Year. We fill up with the hope that the new year will bring a fresh new life. We dream that whatever loads and problems we bear will be lifted and the tensions of the Holiday Season eased. We want to relax. We hunger for a newness. . .
"Not bad, not bad," Gingwiggle said as he poked his green face with the banana-shaped nose out from behind the monitor. He straightened that silly green cap on his head and winked.
"Ah, come on, you blasted Limpock!" I exclaimed. "I was just about to warm up to a solid point."
"Sure you were," he replied with a smirk. "By the looks of the picture you've placed at the top of the letter, it would appear your point has something to do with gifts."
"So?" That was all I got out of my mouth when a curious thought rose up in my mind.
"You are wondering what Limpocks do at Christmas." There was a twinkle in his eyes as he revealed his awareness of my thoughts.
"Well, . . . Yes! You've always popped into my life a week or so before the Feast and naturally I get curious about what you do on the actual day."
"We visit the actual day," Gingwiggle said matter-of-factly.
"You do what? . . . What do you mean 'we?'"
"Singtingle, Pringwiggle, Tinkelsing and I visit the first Christmas. You know. The actual event. The real thing." His crescent grin grew wider and thinner. "Easy now. Don't drift away in confusion. Singtingle and I have been together since the very moment that His Majesty gave us to each other at the beginning. Wonder of wonders, along came Pringwiggle. He was first. Then Tinkelsing. Ah, she is beautiful beyond even my ability to describe her. She doubles the light of Singtingle."
"Uh . . . but, what do you do? I . . mean, at the first Christmas?" I stammered in amazement.
"Hmmn, this might be tricky." Gingwiggle pushed his silver spectacles back up the ridge of his nose and raised his bushy gray-green brows. He said,"Wait one moment!" Before I could say anything he was gone. Poof! Just like that! And almost as quickly he was back. He sat on top of the Prayer Book next to the monitor. The Lord of the Limpocks stared at me for what seemed like a terribly long time. When he spoke it was slowly and with quite a serious tone. "I don't know why I even thought about it in the first place. Singtingle reminded me of how unusual it would be!"
"What would be unusual?" I asked.
He continued. "To have you join us. She reminded me of the specialness of The Limpocian Christmas. It's, well . . ." He seemed almost embarrassed. "It's sort of a private thing. At the time of your celebration of Christmas, all the Limpocks and my little cluster gather at the original moment."
"I don't get it! You've taken me to the Cave quite a few times and showed me many wonders. You've let me see the Child born. But, but . . . I've never seen any other, uh, Limpocks there on any of those occasions."
"That's because you really weren't there! What I have done, and it is what I am supposed to do, is set you down in a dimension that has allowed you to observe the first Christmas through the lens of a spiritual camera. I can adjust the lens to show you different aspects of the truth and wonder of the enfleshment of His Majesty. The camera was never meant to reveal our presence." He raised his right bushy brow and smiled. "However, maybe, just maybe that's the way to show you the Gift as we Limpocks experience it!"
He was gone so quickly the air seemed to pop where he had been sitting. Just a few quick moments passed and then the papers next to the books rustled as Gingwiggle reappeared. "OK!" He said. He snapped his fingers rapidly together three times. I spun around and fell through the usual tunnel of rainbow light and wind until I came to rest in a familiar spot up in the hayloft inside the grotto. It is difficult to describe the sight.
The lady in blue was cradling her new born son. There was sweat on her brow as she sang a lullaby softly in Aramaic. All around the lady and her husband were angels humming. The angels stood suspended in the air but knee deep in hundreds of little green elf-like creatures, the Limpocks. At the feet of the largest and brightest of the angels, who I some how knew was Gabriel, there stood Gingwiggle. He was holding hands with Singtingle who had her other arm around Tinkelsing. Gingwiggle had an arm around Pringwiggle. He and his 'cluster' were singing. Their sound, their music is too beautiful to describe.
I can say this. Somehow, even though they were singing in another tongue, I knew the lyrics were about New Life! They sang about the new life of the baby in his mother's arms. The Babe was bringing new life to every being in the Universe. I thought, that's it! That's THE GIFT of Christmas! As they sang their voices lifted higher and became sweeter. The Limpocks took out handbells in unison and made them ring. The silver tones of the bells blended with angelic and Limpocian voices pushing the darkness beyond the circle back and away from the scene until it disappeared from my sight. I knew what Gingwiggle wanted me know regarding the gift. He wanted the darkness of my life and yours to be pushed out of sight and that the sound of the chorus to fill all our days.
When the sound and sight became too overwhelming to bear I saw Gingwiggle glance up as into the lens of a camera. Then suddenly I was back here.
Receive and enjoy the GIFT of NEW LIFE intended by The Incarnation. It is unique and can not be taken away from us. It can only be lost by blindness of heart and neglect!
Have a Blessed Christmas.
Fr. Col+
