The Value of Anticipation

Last week two very different holidays were being celebrated simultaneously: Groundhog Day & the Feast of the Presentation of Christ.  They both prompt me to reflect on the value of anticipation--yet another beautiful thing we too often forget to view as a blessing in our lives.

Groundhog Day, like New Year's ball drops, accurately represents our truncated concept of anticipation.  Our hedonistic, impatient culture thinks that a wait of mere hours or seconds is exciting.  Any wait much longer than a few minutes, be it a traffic jam or a longer than usual grocery store line, is viewed as a vast injustice in the universe.  Somehow, Americans have turned efficiency into a greater virtue than charity.  The Italian transportation system went a long way towards teaching me patience, but too often, slow left-lane drivers still manage to rouse a complaint from me.  Anticipation, in our cultural milieu is seen as a bore and a nuisance, not as a blessing.

Now, let's shift our gaze to the Presentation.  Simeon had waited for many years for the Savior, whom he was promised to meet.   The Jewish people had waited since the Fall of Adam & Eve and the covenant with Abraham to be freed from the curse of their forefathers and to be fully reunited in their relationship with God.  40 days after the Incarnate God was born in a humble stable, He enters His Father's House in Jerusalem for the first time.  So much anticipation!  So much joy in the aging eyes of Simeon, who recognized His Lord with the eyes of Faith!  So much gladness filling and overflowing the heart of Anna, who spent her days in fasting and prayer!

Anticipation, for those who understood, was not a time of idle waiting; it was a season of preparation.  How unworthy would one feel to meet the Lord with a heart that was soiled and proud?  Anticipation and the long hours that accompany that yearning are blessed times to ready our hearts and minds to be filled by the sublime.  Our capacity for wonder and joy and awe is increased with waiting and preparation, as our appetite for consuming worldly banquets is heightened by fasting and the hinting scents of the dinner being readied.

Next week, we approach another blessed time of anticipation in the Season of Lent.  We are given an opportunity to be receptive to abundant graces as we fast, sacrifice, and pray.  Allow yourself to become excited about this time to whip your passions back into line and to dedicate your heart more completely to the One whose Heart was pierced for you.  Do not be another sour-faced fish-eater.  Be a joy-filled saint on the road to the Resurrection, and purge your soul with fortitude and peace.  That being said, I'll strive for the same myself (and enjoy a last few chocolate cookies while I can!)

Don't treat Easter like a secular holiday with mere moments of anticipation during the Triduum.  Embrace the gift that has been given you and anticipate the saving Sacrifice & hope-filled Resurrection with every fiber of your being.