At my counseling session today, I said something like this: “When I do or say something wrong, I want to be able to say, ‘There I go again,’ and just move on.” That sounds like the gold ring of therapy, of mental health, for me. Can you imagine – me, being able to say that? Just accept something I’ve done wrong, and move on? No spiraling guilt. No hours or days of self-recrimination. No extravagant and overblown apologies. No all-or-nothing thinking about my self-worth. Just “there I go again.” And move on.

I’m not there yet. I’m not at a point of being able to do that. But you know what? I can imagine it. I can see it as something that could happen. I can see it as a possibility in the future. And that, I suppose, is the first step toward making it a reality. So that’s a huge sign of God’s light in my life – actually believing that hope is possible, whether likely or not.

This evening, I had a phone conversation with someone who’s making some really difficult decisions about her elderly parents, and their living arrangements. I have seen how hard this is for families to maneuver through, but I can see that there is hope there. “I’m going to make sure they’re comfortable,” she said. It’s not easy, but it’s doable, and this woman has hope that it’s going to be okay, even if it’s not what everyone wishes were the case. I saw God’s light shining in this situation, giving them hope.

I saw signs of God in two conversations today, one from inside me, and one I witnessed in someone else.

That’s where I saw the light of God today, the second Tuesday of Advent.

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