“Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence.”

It’s the last week of September. The time is 12 noon. I’m enjoying a brisk walk about town. And I’m not feeling even a tad bit guilty for taking a break from my work on a new illustration. It’s been one-of-those-weeks. You know the kind. Deadlines, emails, phone calls, interruptions.

Lost in my own thoughts, I pay little attention to the repetitive sound of the church bells chiming the hour. The twelfth toll sounds, and a hymn melody is broadcasted over the church’s horn-type speakers. The music grabs my attention.

I know this tune. And I know the lyrics. It’s a Christmas carol. Christmas music in September? Not a problem for me. I sing along.

Let all mortal flesh keep silence…
Silence. I’ve heard that silence is golden. It’s a rare occurrence in my life.

Ponder nothing earthly minded…
My laundry list of things to complete today certainly fits into this category.

Christ our God to earth descendeth…
Silent pondering—not of earthly things—but of joyful things, Christmasy things. Like the birth of the Christ Child in Bethlehem.

With a smile on my face and urgency in my steps, I rush back to the cottage and finish my collage. It’s a depiction of a baby in a hay-filled manger that I created from recycled Christmas cards.

A Christmas carol in September! Timing is everything.

Silence. Ponder. Christ.