Advent Busyness

One thing I hate about myself is that, when people ask me how I am or how things are going, I inevitably answer "busy."

Isn't everyone busy this time of year? Isn't everyone busy most times of the year?

I'd like to propose a change. Let's just assume, across the board, that everyone's crazy busy. And when someone asks you how you are or how things are going, you are NOT allowed to answer busy. We know you're busy, but how are things really going?

Wouldn't it be refreshing if, when you asked your spouse or neighbor or friend how they were doing and they replied, "fantastic!" Or maybe "excellent!" When someone answers "busy," we instantly start comparing notes to see who is truly busier. It's a voracious cycle where both parties leave the conversation feeling winded, burdened, and well, too busy.

When we're highly-scheduled and busy, we think we're important. But it's not true. You can make a huge difference in this cold, dark world by bringing peace, a slower pace, and joy to those around you. My personal motto this season is "don't be harried."

"Harried" is a code word for "busy!"

I've been making a point to not say the "b" word (or the "h" word) in the course of conversation. No one really cares that I'm busy. Busyness is a choice, just like the choices to love someone or to be happy. It's all within our power to choose, with a little conscious discipline to stop that "b" word from rolling off our tongues.

It's a tough change, however, not unlike the changes we're grappling with at mass (you knew I had to address this sometime!). It's been a much-publicized updating of the English mass; we've been hearing about the changes for months and now we're living them. You get so into auto-pilot mode and answer certain ways out of habit. For example, we're no longer saying "And also with you," but "And with your spirit." Technically, it's a two-word change and yet, throughout the two masses we've attended since the Church's "go live" of the new format of mass, the congregation muddles through with a mish-mash, "And also with, um, oops, your spirit." Then they turn to their neighbors and sort of giggle because, c'mon, it's two words and we still cannot unlearn decades of repetition.

For the record, the mass changes are beautiful. The changes have forced us to slow down and refocus on what our faith tradition teaches. It's like hearing our own mass from an outsider's perspective and Advent couldn't have been a better time to become reacquainted with our tradition....in the midst of the busyness of Christmas preparation.

We're all busy. Let's get over it. I challenge you (and me) to eradicate that word from our vocabulary and unlearn the concept of busy.