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    Hi, I’m Krista.

    Strategic communicator and storyteller.

    I am the wife of a very talented musician who takes me around the world in pursuit of excellence. Mama to Jakob, Audrey and Ella, who just happens to have Down Syndrome.
    And an aspiring disciple of Jesus, defender of the oppressed, writer, graphic designer and photographer.

    I write and speak on navigating through the fog of life…you know, when things don’t go exactly as planned and am fuelled by a passion to amplify the voices of those on the margins…
    oh, and coffee…lots of coffee.

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On the First Sunday of Advent: Take the now.

December 2, 2012
Like for many children, my Christmas’ were often divided between my mother and father who divorced when I was six. It is something couples rarely think about when contemplating divorce: the simple ramifications for your children as they grow up. Christmas’, birthdays and other milestones, split or awkwardly endured between two families. In truth, it was always my dad who received the short end of the stick. His small family, my nana, and his one sister and her family lived hours away so it was usually just him and us in his small unequipped apartment. It was a time that my brother and I never quite settled into. It never became comfortable like the traditions we shared with my mom, grandparents and our 12 cousins. Now that I am parent, I think about how lonely and desperate those Christmas’ must have felt for him – wanting to share in the magic of a child’s favorite day, wanting to create memories and hear laughter, when in reality, I am sure that my brother and I ungratefully tore open our gifts and then watched T.V. for the rest of the day. I have few memories of Christmas’s with my dad, because quite frankly, there weren’t that many. I remember my father getting so angry with us when we told him I wasn’t coming for the weekend because there was a party I wanted to go to and I am sure Christmas day was no exception: I had better plans.


Now that I am a parent, I am getting closer to understanding what that must have been like for him. It is our tendency in North American culture, to complain about surplus: too much to buy, too much to do, too many friends and too much family to see, parties to go to and church services to fit in. How foolish. How selfish. We rush about and never take time to swallow the richness or savour the season. In this Advent season, I challenge you to be cognoscente of what is going on around you and inside you. Christmas is not all about us as individuals. It’s not about what we will receive or the memories we will have but what we can give to others. Giving and enjoying time spent with those who love my children, parents and grandparents alike. How blessed we are. Christmas is not about enduring our endless responsibilities either. Working at an Anglican Church we are no strangers to the marathon of services, (especially years, like this year when Sunday falls the day before Christmas Eve) but consider how blessed we are that we have the freedom to worship and if we can not take time to be quiet and reflect in Church, God’s house, then will our meditation elsewhere be any more effective? Last week, as I sat in church alone, frazzled and distant (Ben had another commitment), I was contemplating the busyness of my life desperate for some time to take for myself – time to regroup, meditate and prepare for the season of Advent. And it was in that moment, as they prepared the bread and the wine, that a still, small voice whispered “now. I have given you now.” 


Take the now, and have a blessed first week of Advent.


For each day of Advent, along with treats of course, we have included a passage of scripture to read with our children. I thought I would share them just in case you were looking for ideas. This week, I have focused on Old Testament prophecies, which deal with big words for a 5 year old, let alone a 3 year old so it’s a great opportunity, as well, to talk about big words.
Isaiah 40:1-5
What is a prophecy?
Isaiah 42:1, 5-6
What is Justice?
Isaiah 11:1-5
What is righteousness?
Jeremiah 23:5-6 
Why do you think that God sent Jesus?
Isaiah 7:14
Immanuel which means God with us.
Isaiah 60:1-3, 19-22
Look up the definition of light.
Micah 5:2-5
What is Peace?

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  • About Me

    Hi, I’m Krista.

    Strategic communicator and storyteller.

    I am the wife of a very talented musician who takes me around the world in pursuit of excellence. Mama to Jakob, Audrey and Ella, who just happens to have Down Syndrome.
    And an aspiring disciple of Jesus, defender of the oppressed, writer, graphic designer and photographer.

    I write and speak on navigating through the fog of life…you know, when things don’t go exactly as planned and am fuelled by a passion to amplify the voices of those on the margins…
    oh, and coffee…lots of coffee.

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