It’s a funny thing, time. Depending on the situation, it seems to pass at varying speeds.  Take fifteen minutes in the doctor’s office, for example: in the waiting room, it takes an age and seems impossible to fill. In the actual office with the doctor, it passes in a blink and isn’t long enough to ask all our questions. Our perception of time varies as we age, as well. There’s a mathematical basis for that: five years at ten years old was half my life, and an entire lifetime at five! Now, at over fifty, it’s a mere ten percent. The company we keep matters, too. Regarding unpleasant company, Jean-Paul Sartre wrote in No Exit, “Hell is other people.” As the saying goes, however, time flies when you’re having fun. Time spent in good company goes quickly. 

I’ve also noticed that time seems to pass more quickly for people with children than for those without. This observation is not limited to my personal experience of childlessness, either. I’ve had aunts and uncles who had no kids, and one couple seemed nearly frozen in time, to my young eyes. Time marches inexorably onwards for all of us, though – I think the difference is in how we mark it. People seeing children grow and change firsthand mark it differently than those of us who don’t. 

That said, there are other ways to mark time. Here in Ohio, we have noticeable seasons: spring, summer, fall, and winter, each markedly different at a glance. Where I grew up,  we had only two: “rainy” and “mosquito.” In the Church, we are blessed with seasons as well. They are liturgical seasons, and they are in step with the natural seasons (depending upon where you live), but are out of step with the secular world (no matter where you live). We are free to tap into this gift of liturgical seasons, and thus engage with and mark the flow of time. 

Advent is a season of waiting: waiting for Christmas, waiting for Christ, and waiting for true joy. The majority of the season of Advent takes place  in  fall, not winter, interestingly. Winter doesn’t start in the Northern Hemisphere until December 21st.

Christmas, contrary to our secular world’s opinion, lasts more than two days,  and does not start on December 24th. The Twelve Days of Christmas begin on the 25th,  and continue until the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6th! While the vestments return to green following Epiphany, and we technically enter into Ordinary Time, the Church still invites us to continue reflecting on the mystery of the Nativity through the Presentation of Our Lord on February 2nd. (See here for more information.) 

Then, we get a little rest: a brief period of Ordinary Time, marked by green vestments.  This is a time to spend growing and living a normal sacramental life. There is a second period of Ordinary Time after Easter. 

Next up is Lent, a season of penance and sacrifice. Embracing this season is inconvenient, uncomfortable, and out of step with the secular world. That’s okay, it’s supposed to be! It’s awkward to live out and embrace, but it’s so worth it. Easter is so much richer and sweeter for it. 

Speaking of Easter: Easter is actually the holiest day of the year, not Christmas.  The Easter season runs seven to eight weeks, roughly twice the Christmas season – not just until the candy and eggs run out. As Pope St. John Paul II said,  “We are an Easter people,  and Alleluia is our song!”

After the glorious celebration of Easter, we are back to Ordinary Time, a season in two parts, to complete a total of thirty-four weeks. More growing, more opportunities for deepening our connection to God and to each other!

To find  more information on the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar in the US, visit the USCCB website. My apologies for not being as familiar with other areas and rites. 

Throughout the years, I’ve tried different ways to  to really engage with these seasons. A few of my favorites are: 

  • Get outside in nature and/or look out the window and observe the seasons mindfully.
  • Change the thermostat settings according to the seasons and dress accordingly. (This may also save energy and money, if you’re in a position to try it.)
  • Play music corresponding to the liturgical seasons, rather than the commercial seasons.
  • Meal plan in step with the schedule of feasts and fasts of the Church.
  • Accessorize for Mass in coordination with the vestment colors for the day (eg. a pink tie or rose earrings for the 3rd Sunday of Advent). 

These are just mall ways I’ve found to consciously celebrate the rhythm of the life of the Church, ways to step out of sync with the secular world and into sync with the life we’re meant to live – in tune with God and His plans.  

We all know it can be difficult to start a new habit, so it is always good to start small! Work in a celebration of your favorite saints on their feast days with something significant to them, perhaps. 

  • Say a rosary (or an extra one!) on a Marian feast day or on St. Dominic’s feast day.
  • Donate to an animal shelter on St. Francis’ feast day.
  • Read the saint’s life story.
  • Go to Mass or Adoration. 
  • Listen to or sing favorite hymns on St. Cecilia’s feast day.

People like to say holidays are for the kids, and certainly all these things would be really fun to do with and teach to children. Nevertheless, they’re meaningful and fun for adults, too. Aren’t we all children in God’s eyes? I invite you to join me in  celebrating the lives we have now,  and engaging with the reality around us. 

Delsonora lives in Central Ohio and has been married to the best husband a woman could want for over a quarter century. She has a disability and was adopted as an infant. Delsonora loves pets, crafting, and food, and she thinks that coincidence is often a “divine hint”. Catholic from conception, she’s convinced that the faith is why, despite the prevalence of other options, she was able to be born.