Christmas-time in December is my absolute favorite time of the year. I love the cold weather and how the air actually feels fresh, quite an event in Manhattan. I love seeing the evergreen trees spread out on the sidewalks all around the Upper East Side near my dorm.
However, what I love most is stopping in my local church to just sit and think, pray, meditate, whatever word you want to use. I love sitting in a church pew in an empty church with the lights turned down low. The 4 candles symbolically circumscribed by an evergreen wreath stand as reminders of the rapid approaching 25th of December. 2 large evergreen trees stand guard on both sides of the altar, and white branches scattered in glass vases sit in front.
I honestly felt ashamed to take a picture of the scene. In some ways I felt I was depicting something that shouldn’t be captured. In fact, I knew it couldn’t be captured. My lens could only capture the concrete, not the spirit or emotion of the experience. There I sat alone, one of the few places I can get away and be by myself. Some people hate to be alone, but for me it’s one of the best experiences I know.
When I went to France, and saw Notre Dame, it was a special celebration. It was after christmas and right around Ash Wednesday. I was lucky enough to see the supposed original crown of thorns worn my Jesus. It was behind a dark red glass at the back of the cathedral and it was honestly amazing. Check it out one day.