It is the least favourite part of Autumn in our house - Christmas is too far away for the children (and too close for the Vicar!!), the days are cold, damp and windy, the trees have dropped their leaves and the beautiful autumn colours are now just another garden nightmare. It's cold but not frosty with that wonderful winter sun. There is far too much to do without any of the fun bits on the horizon. We can't wait for Winter to arrive properly with Christmas hard on its heels.
The worst part is that the light has gone - days are drear and grey, evenings are dark - those of us who rise early are up before the Sun and it goes long before the kids are settled - the long summer evenings in the garden with a cold beer are a distant memory - all we can look forward to is a cup of cocoa huddled round the fire. SAD is a big problem - not depression but Seasonally Affected Disorder - the lack of sun affects many people, making them really unwell - for the rest of us there is a general increase of grumpiness fuelled by the endless round of colds.
Yet into this darkness comes the faintest glimmer of hope - a star began to brighten in the sky announcing the end of a long darkness, academics began heroic journeys to find it's source, a young woman waited for the time to come for the birth of her firstborn child. We too wait - we wait for the celebrations to begin, but also perhaps we are hoping for light to come into our darkness, for a liberator to come, a saviour - "the light shines in the darkness..." - are you still waiting for the light?
