Every year, many Royals’ look forward to December for the Christmas season. Though we may believe the holiday season is encompassed by moments like when you deck your house in festive décor, buy matching PJ sets for you and your family, and create a Christmas wish list, the celebration of Advent proves that the holiday season is so much more.

The 28 day season of Advent started Sunday, Nov.17, and ends Saturday, Dec. 24. Each year, the start day of Advent changes, but it always ends on Christmas Eve. The word “Advent’ refers to the coming of an important person, and as a part of the Advent season, we are called to reflect and prepare for the coming of Christ.

One of Rosary’s own religion teachers, Mr. Kim, reflected on the purpose of the season: “Now, imagine this, you just won a competition where you get to host a Christmas party and invite your celebrity of choice: Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, Harry Styles, Billie Eilish…Can you imagine!? How would you prepare? I know what I would do. First, I would begin to deep clean my whole apartment, making sure every corner and tile is immaculate. Then, I would purchase decorations and volun-tell my friends to help me decorate. After that, I have to make sure the food is ‘bussin’ (Lol). So, I would spend the week mastering my culinary technique by YouTubing recipes, and of course, ordering chicken nuggets from Chick-fil-A (Chick-fil-A> Canes). Lastly, I will make sure to get a nice haircut, get my eyebrows threaded, and buy some nice ‘drip’ (lol) to make sure I look my absolute best for this party.”

He then goes on to further explain how we can apply the same preparation to God during this Advent season:

“These are just some of the ways I, and probably you, would prepare for the arrival of our favorite celebrities. This is exactly the type of attitude and urgency we need during the season of Advent. Our Lord, Jesus Christ, is about to arrive into the world and into our lives. How are we preparing ourselves for this? Will we create space to welcome the King of kings into moments of our daily lives? Or will we continue to keep the clutter of our self-interested actions, leaving Jesus outside of the home of our hearts, just as the people of Bethlehem did? So, to echo John the Baptist, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.’ May we pray for the faith and humility to let go of the things of this world so that we may clear the way for Jesus. For he is the perfection of love and that perfect love is all that is needed to satisfy our restless hearts.”

Advent is a time where we can all thank God for his blessings and prepare ourselves for his second coming. This season is a reminder of how gracious God has been and serves as a reminder on how and why we should be grateful. So, be sure to dedicate some time to God in this season of faith.