A typical blog message was written this Advent - Past, Present and Future Perfect?

The days of letter writing are fast dwindling. The Royal Mail is struggling to maintain its service amongst the backdrop of striking workers. Electronic mail has rapidly superseded the stamp and envelope or 'snail mail'. I have recently discovered that Charles Dickens was a keen letter writer, so keen that he anticipated responses to his communications by successfully applying for and installing a post-box in his wall at his home in Gad's Hill in Kent. This very post-box has been recommissioned by the Royal Mail, perhaps as an attempt to rediscover the craft of letter writing and the finer art of sticking a stamp on an envelope?
Charles Dickens is celebrated at this time of year for 'A Christmas Carol.' This book, written in just six weeks, was the first of his writings not to be serialised. When it first went on sale in 1843 it was an immediate hit. Dickens had captured a mood. his socio-political tale emphasised the great gulf in need and opportunity in late Georgian, early Victorian society. But the novel also displayed the reality of Christmas in the mid-19th century. This was a one-day holiday without crackers or cards (which only caught on from 1850's onwards). Presents were few and only for the children. This was a day for religious devotion, music and games.

'A Christmas Carol' is particularly evident in our own household because it is being used as an English GCSE text. (I have to say that this was much to the relief of the English student because it replaced the much-vaunted, much-feared and much longer, 'Pride and Prejudice')! The central protagonist, Ebenezer Scrooge, has much to teach us about lightness of spirit, generosity and kind regard. Such are the values of the one who gave his name to the present-giver - Santa Klaus. Nicholas, the bishop of Myra (6th December) from the 4th century has been ascribed the role of Father Christmas due to his reputation of being a worker of wonders. His 9th century hagiography shares his love of children, and, in particular how he saved three girls from prostitution by providing them with much needed funds. This earthy story doesn't quite translate to the fun and fizz of Christmas present!
As the Christmas cards and email messages fill our post-boxes and in-boxes, I wonder if we might think about how we might communicate the mystery of Christmas? Dickens had his own particular message to share. What might your Christmas Carol be and how would it be sung? This Sunday, we continue on our Advent journey. We haven't arrived at Christmas. Advent helps us to put the brakes on and wait and reflect upon the reality of the world's needs and our groping and straining for a better life for so many people. So, stay in Advent, we will have 12 days of feasting when they come - that surely is enough? For now, look into the past and observe the present and pray for a peaceable future.