Shivvy and I make our way to St. Augustine Beach most mornings.
The sea and the sky and the shore are always changing so we do not know what to expect.
Shivvy cavorts freely and joyfully along the shore;
I stand on the three foot berm that runs for miles along the shore sipping my real Florida orange juice
as the last remnants of the night make room for this day’s dawning. As ever, this morning, I reflect:
There are sometimes dark clouds in our lives, Lord.
Pierce the gloominess of our lives with Your very own LIght.
May we allow You to dawn in us this day.
May we be ready for Your dawning in a new way in our lives this Christmas.
May this celebration of Jesus’ birth bring meaning and joy in the midst of our worries and concerns.
And may we BE the dawning of your light and love and justice
in our homes, our neighborhoods, our jobs, our world.
And there are dark and ominous clouds over our land right now, Lord.
Pierce our greed and hate and fear and complacency and violence with hope, Lord.
May we pray earnestly for a new dawn for our beloved country.
May we BE the dawning of your light and love and justice in our land.
Lord Jesus, come; may we be ready for the dawn of your coming in a new way this Christmas,
May the light of that dawning transform our lives and our land.
We need Your LIght and Your Love more than ever.
O come, thou dayspring, come and cheer
Our spirits by thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
O Antiphons
Bob Traupman
priest / writerThursday, December 6, 2007 / 8:04 AM / The feast of St. Nicholas
Father Bob's Reflections 
The title should be “The Dawn”