For me, Christmas with Hot Apple Cider has been a gift that just keeps on giving, in ways that go well beyond writing.
A young woman writes about how she still connects to her dad in sweet and surprising ways.
I must admit. I was very reluctant about applying to be in Christmas with Hot Apple Cider. The submission deadline was at a very busy time for me personally and I wasn’t really sure that I would get in. I did have a story I thought others might relate to, about something that happened while I was Christmas shopping just four months after I lost my dad.
Within a very short time span, I received prompting from three different people who didn’t know each other. I decided to take a leap of faith and send in my story.
After some months, an email came, I expected it to be a rejection, but when I opened it, I was pleasantly delighted to discover that my story had been accepted! I read the email over several times to make sure I’d read it correctly. Each time I read it, it was like opening up a brand new present.
I felt like a kid at Christmastime (no pun intended).
And that feeling has stayed with me. The opportunity to be part of this book resulted in my receiving several unexpected gifts.
The first gift was that of an answered prayer.
In this turbulent, weary season of life, I had asked Jesus to simply let something good happen to me. I didn’t care what it was, but I wanted a present from heaven, a gift of joy, to just fall into my lap. This book turned out to be the way He answered that prayer.
The second gift has been the book itself.
I usually light a candle, have a hot drink, and read a few stories in one sitting. This practice has helped me be countercultural as we approach Christmas. In the Advent season that is supposed to be about slowing down to wait in wonder, the world races with materialism and consumerism. Through poetry and prose, the stories in this book have slowed me down so I can authentically connect with the meaning of Christmas.
As I’ve mulled over the stories, I’ve been delighted, challenged, and encouraged. I’ve been transported from Nigeria to the Canadian North, from a play about an innkeeper to an encounter with Jesus in a busy shopping mall…. My heart has been touched in so many ways! I’m proud to be in the company of such fine Canadian writers from coast to coast.
Lastly, through the book launch a fellow contributor and I held recently, we were able to offer the gift of an Advent oasis to all who attended, including ourselves.
We called our launch, “Art in Advent.” We didn’t want another busy activity in the season leading up to Christmas, but rather an afternoon escape from the busyness. Our guests walked into a beautifully decorated home and were greeted with smells of hot apple cider and chai tea that transported all of us to a different time and place.
In a sense, applying to be in Christmas with Hot Apple Cider was an act of obedience to a divine prompting. The experience has turned out to be filled with many gifts.
I encourage anyone reading this post who might be considering a leap of faith to take it. Who knows what treasures await you on the other side of that leap?
Marian Shehata is an educator who is passionate about social justice, spiritual formation, and the empowerment of young women. She enjoys writing in several spheres, particularly human rights curriculum and devotional writing. She was the visionary and lead author of a small group Lenten curriculum used in her church and beyond. Marian is especially proud of her work as co-editor of S.I.S.T.A. Soul Food: Delightful Recipes & Recollections—an anthology of recipes and women’s stories. Based in Toronto, Ontario, Marian is a foodie who is always up for an adventure, locally and globally.
I appreciated your bitter-sweet story of connections when I read it in Christmas with Hot Apple Cider. I, too, was very fond of my father, and odd little things continue to remind me of him and my relationship with them.
I’m pleased to read here the effects for you of your being obedient to God’s nudges in writing and submitting this story. . Don’t be surprised if there are more.