December 23rd, 2024
“In the past several years, I’ve found delight in secular ‘Advent’ calendars” - Claire Zadjel
In the past several years, I’ve found delight in secular “Advent” calendars, the twenty-five-day cardboard countdowns with treats — chocolates, jams, and teas — hidden behind little square doors. Something about the surprise each day, the anticipation of something new, builds my excitement for Christmas and our Lord who is to come. This year, during an Advent that neatly lines up with the secular twenty-five-day countdown, I’ve decided to create an artistic Advent calendar. After years of burnout, disappointment, creative stagnancy, and praying to the Lord about what I should do instead of writing stories, the Lord has begun to answer my prayers not by opening new doors and revealing new gifts, but by reigniting the urgent desire to write stories.
For many months, I’ve been uncertain about how to begin, how to discern what stories the Lord is asking me to tell, and how to know where my work might fit in once a draft is in the works. Over the years, I’ve learned that when something seems daunting, it’s sometimes necessary to take one small step. Or in this case, twenty-five small steps. Every day during Advent, I’ve decided to write a monologue. At some point during the day (to be honest, most of the time, it’s right before bed), I open my laptop, ask for guidance from the Holy Spirit, and start creating a character. I try not to judge myself, even if the character seems juvenile or the sentiment of the piece isn’t particularly evocative or meaningful. Each character is just a member of the cast of My Imagination, preparing for something on the horizon that I don’t fully comprehend yet.
Although Christmas has not arrived, the Lord has begun to heal me creatively. I feel more joyful not only filling the empty page but also more hopeful for the future, for that which the Lord is preparing me for, even though I don’t know in which direction He is leading me. More importantly, I feel a deeper trust in the Lord and how He is at work in my life. I know that whatever stories I am meant to tell will come into my imagination at exactly the right time, just as Christ prepares us for Himself and always comes at exactly the right time.
Claire Zajdel is a Catholic playwright and creative writer from Chicago.