December comes around, and cue the inevitable jokes about my name. ‘Have a Holly Jolley Christmas’… or … ‘Tis the season to be Jolley’. Having my name at this time of year comes with expectations and pressure. It makes me wonder, amidst the busyness and flurry of things to do and people to see, should I be cheerier? More merry and bright and a little less snarky and grumpy? Should I slip up even once, I run the risk of one of those classic Christmas songs being sung in my direction, as a reminder of the nominative determination that should dictate my character.
I would love to be Jolly, and often I am, but whether I like it or not, I will always, and can only ever be Jolley. Christmas is not a time to perform a feeling, but a time to be authentic. The Christ Child is born in the chaos of tired parents, confused visitors, and animals doing what animals do. I’d wager no one at the manger is necessarily the “best version” of themselves. They are simply themselves. And that is where God chooses to be.
Christmas can come with a list as long as Santa’s of unspoken rules: be joyful, be grateful, get along, get into the festive spirit. While many will be carrying grief, exhaustion, awkward family dynamics or the one conversation we’re hoping won’t come up over the dinner table. The good news of Christmas is that we don’t need to sort ourselves out first, before God is pleased to dwell with us exactly where we are. And so, while I would be the last to demand your jollity, perhaps Jesus models something of how we might treat those around us at this time of year; our friends, our family, our neighbours in church. Maybe this little child invites us to see one another, not as we wish they would be, but as they really are. Less fixing, less managing, more patience. More presence. More grace.
It is this season to be you. Wonderfully, gloriously you. And that is the greatest gift you could give anyone this year!
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Jolley Gosnold
