The 2023 Counting down plan begins...

It’s that time of year when I start to dream and scheme and think and plan about this year’s Advent Calendar. Every month between now and November I’ll send a brief writing update on what’s ahead with this year’s Counting Down to Christmas.

When does Advent begin?

Before I tell you about my ideas for this year’s Counting Down to Christmas, I thought I’d share a writing challenge that hits me every year. By this time of year I’ve already asked myself the question, “When does Advent start this year?”

The ‘open the door’ styled traditional Advent Calendar begins on the 1st December, and many people think of this date as the start of Advent. There are plenty of Advent Calendars available each year that keep to the 1st to 24th December and include daily offerings of confectionary, tea, coffee, wine, cheese, Lego, chocolate, soap, books, stickers, socks and just about anything else you can imagine. It makes sense to use the 1st December if you want to reuse an Advent Calendar year after year. If I was writing for this style of Advent Calendar every year there’d be 24 days.

For those with backgrounds in church traditions that celebrate Advent, a different style of Advent Calendar involves lighting the Advent Candle each Sunday leading up to Christmas Day. Unlike Easter which is a moveable feast, Christmas Day is always on the 25th December. The day of the week might change but the date doesn’t. This means that the start of Advent has to move each year to fit in four Sundays before Christmas Day. The length of Advent varies between 22 days and 28 days.

Which brings me right back to my question - When does Advent start this year? And the real question - How many days of writing do I need to complete?

The answer is Sunday 3rd December 2023 and there’ll be 22 days in Advent.

I’m not exactly sure why this brings me such joy, but I love making spreadsheets. I love the challenge of figuring out problems and the satisfaction of finding answers. And given this question about the length of Advent me every year, it’s surprising that I haven’t thought of making an excel calculator sooner. Sure, I can search for the answer on the internet, but really! Why not make a spreadsheet? I’ve used what should have been writing time to bring you the official Counting Down to Christmas calculator.

Enter dates of previous years or upcoming years and see how many days there’ll be in Advent, the start and end of Advent, the day of the week Christmas Day falls, and how many days until Christmas Day. There’s a second sheet with a quick reference list so you can scroll down and see the pattern over the next few years. Find out when Christmas Day will next fall on a Monday or how long until the next year where there’ll be 22 days in Advent. I think most devices now have free viewers to open the spreadsheet, but if you’re having trouble let me know.

The Counting Down to Christmas calculator tells me there’s 170 days until Christmas Day today. Better get my writing skates on!

The theme for 2023

All this sleuthing for dates got me thinking about going on a hunt for clues. I’m always keen for an adventure. What is the real meaning of Christmas? What is Christmas all about? What fresh discoveries can we make this year? My working title is something like, “The hunt for Christmas”. A little bit of mystery, some detective work, a hint of wonder and surprise. I’m thinking of a daily reveal, a progressive story with a treasure hunt aspect to it. Every day we’ll want to turn the page for the next part of the adventure. Every day we’ll open a new door in our virtual Counting Down to Christmas emails.

Inspiration for Counting Down to Christmas 2023

Inspiration comes from many sources. Last year I became very intrigued with the smells and tastes of herbs and spices. The previous year was based on music and had a playlist. This year is looking set to be story based with visuals to match.

Here’s some of the stories and ideas that have been on my mind when I’ve been pondering writing Counting Down to Christmas for 2023.

Getting Lost

A couple of years ago my gift of choice for Christmas was the Getting Lost Game. I gave it to everyone! It’s a simple idea. Shuffle the pack of cards. Drive or walk to a starting point and follow the directions on the cards. It’s unpredictable, fun, surprising and random.

Counting Down to Christmas has that random factor. From day to day throughout Advent, the daily email takes us on a journey of surprise. We all get lost at times, and feeling lost at Christmas is more common than we might realise. Part of Counting Down to Christmas is exploring that feeling of being lost and finding our way again.

Charlie Brown’s Christmas

I only recently discovered Charlie Brown’s Christmas. I know for many North American’s it’s a classic having been around since 1965. For me it’s fairly new and it’s now one of my must watch movies each Christmas. The commercialisation of Christmas has only increased since 1965, yet the message of the movie is still as relevant today as it was then.

Where are you Christmas?

The 2000 song, “Where are you Christmas"?” written by Mariah Carey, James Horner and Will Jennings for the movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas was recorded by Faith Hill. I like the version from the movie but I’ve put a link to Faith’s version as well.

Where are you Christmas
Why can't I find you
Why have you gone away
Where is the laughter
You used to bring me
Why can't I hear music play

My world is changing
I'm rearranging
Does that mean Christmas changes too

The lyric, “Why can’t I find you?” seems such a strong Christmas theme to me. Even when we think we know the Christmas story it has the power to surprise us every year. There are times when God seems far from us and we have that feeling of being a bit lost in the busy and chaotic festive season. My hope with Counting Down to Christmas every year is that it grounds us in the moment and in the story of God With Us.

Blues Clues

Blues Clues isn’t a Christmas themed inspiration but one about discovery and warmth and belonging. Counting Down to Christmas is a discovery process. Every year I’m surprised by something new. It surprises me in my writing process and then I’m freshly surprised with feedback from subscribers. This is the wonder of Christmas.

Blues Clues arrived into our family life just after we’d made one of those big moves that minstry families tend to make where everything gets completely uprooted. House, neighbourhood, church, friends, family… all of it changing. It’s hard to feel a sense of belonging. Our four year old turned five the day after the big move and started school. Our then three year old, grieving the upheaval and the changes, and missing his sister and playmate, sat down in front of the TV for morning cartoons while I unpacked boxes. It is a wonder to me that on that day he found new friends in Steve and Blue. The format of looking for three clues each episode was simple and fun. I enjoyed watching as much as my preschooler although I didn’t have my own Handy-Dandy notebook or insist on sitting in a red armchair, or shout at the TV to help Steve and Blue. There’s a new look contemporary Blues Clues out now, and a whole new fan base, but I have a soft spot for the OG version.

Enola Holmes

It is a welcome delight to me that when I start to write Counting Down to Christmas it’s a process of fresh discovery and adventure. There’s something awe-inspiring and dynamic about engaging God With Us which brings an element of surprise and unpredictability amidst the known certainty.

Sherlock Holmes was always a favourite read. I’m yet to read the Enola Holmes books but I did enjoy the Netflix original movies. I like the vibe of the unexpected and unpredictable, the sense of adventure and discovery and not really quite knowing what comes next, yet like all detective tales, knowing that the mystery will be solved by the end of the book or movie.

Next month

Well there you have it - the thoughts so far. Between now and when I next post an update, the ideas swirling in my head will hopefully find form. I’ll have made an outline of the plan and started writing. I’m not sure what the next post will include, but I’m glad for this space to keep you updated on progress.

On the journey

Caroline