Psalm of Praise
Sing for joy in summer
When earth is bright and green.
Sing with fun in winter
When snow is velveteen.
In spring sing out with gusto
For the life to soon unfold—
And sing with zest in autumn
For the woodlands colored gold.
- Joan Stephen
In another first in a year of firsts since 2019, SCS hosted a student and faculty holiday party this week in the atrium of the 640 Massachusetts Avenue campus. With hundreds of revelers and a bountiful spread of food, drink, and good cheer, the party was a joyous gathering that felt even more so because of the absence of such an event in over three years. The occasion of merriment would not have been possible without the dedicated efforts of the SCS Events, Communications, and Operations teams.
Joan Stephen’s “Psalm of Praise” comes to my mind and heart as I reflect on this experience. Every season of the year holds for us some special gifts. This wintertime, we anticipate closing the books on another busy fall semester just in time for a meaningful break for the Christmas and New Year holidays. Stephen invites us to “sing with fun in winter.” While I did not detect any audible singing in the atrium, I did observe the sparks of spontaneously arising affection, warmth, and excitement as students ran into faculty members they did not expect to see and staff members celebrated with one another as another successful semester comes to a close.
The spirit of praise was detectable throughout the space. A gratitude wall invited guests to name the notable gifts they wanted to publicly appreciate about their experience at Georgetown. A festive card-making station offered a welcome opportunity to amplify the spirit of holiday in a colorful and creative way. And melodious tunes and delicious small plates added to the chorus of conversation and laughter. It felt to me, one week after the SCS faculty and staff retreat, like another important milestone on the road to journeying back to each other as a community bonded together by the Georgetown journey.
Holidays, and especially this one, can be difficult for people. And there is a need to be gracious and understanding about the burdens that many carry in their silence at a time of year that brings to the surface much sadness and despair. But at the same time, this season can be a time to welcome the gifts of ourselves and each other. The celebrations of this season can become meaningful occasions to savor the goodness that we encounter in the people around us. The joy of this season also resides in the expectation of the coming rest.
In the spirit of the holiday break, I invite you to rest and reflect during your brief but welcome time away from study and work. I invite you to consider: How are you going to find time in the next few weeks to pause and reflect on what in your life is worthy of your greater praise? How will you mark the occasion of rest from work and school in a way that helps you savor this season? What is stirring in you as a possible course correction or transformation in your inner life or external actions as we approach the new year?