I’d Give It All Up For You

The lead-up to the Christmas miracle is one filled with hope and anticipation. In it, we find a chaotic cacophony of busyness and planning, of joy and frustrations. We know what is to come and yet, with a childlike faith, we wait around trees, in lines, or in living rooms for the story to unfold.

Well, a group of friends did the same in A Very Merry Pooh Year. It’s a group that seems to have nothing in common and yet, through the years, have become the best of friends. Kangaroos, a pig, a bear, a donkey, a rabbit, and a bouncing tiger have a message about relationships that we must hold close this Christmas season.

We gather with Winnie the Pooh and his friends on Christmas Eve, where there is so much joy and anxiety in one room. Stories of past times, food preparation, unboxing and organizing decorations, planning for the moment and the future, all unfolding at the exact same time. The child in the midst of them looks out into the darkness and asks with deep hope and anticipation, “Momma, is Santa coming soon?” From there, we are taken on a fascinating tale in which we learn how far true friends will go to see your dreams come true. 

I don’t want to tell you the whole story, because there would then be no reason for you to go and watch the movie. But what I can say with great confidence is that love wins in the end. The climax comes after a series of failures, when, through tears, Piglet makes the most powerful statement in the movie: “What’s Christmas if your best friend isn’t here to share it? I don’t even know what present I wanted, but I’d give it up to have Pooh Bear here.”

Piglet had found the real meaning of the season. It wasn’t the time everyone had spent envisioning the perfect gift to ask for. It wasn’t decorating the tree and trying to make the house perfect. It was having those he loved close by. None of the stuff mattered if there wasn’t someone to share it with.

And so it is with us. The children have carefully examined all the toy catalogs and carefully made notes made in the margins, wishlists have been created and shared online with those who are tasked with buying gifts, reservations have been made to pick up hams and turkeys and if you’re like me, you’ve invested in a stock of scotch tape because the children steal it before you can use it. We have decorated the house, and everything is ready. In the midst of the preparation, have we truly spent time building relationships and memories? Have we invested in those who sustain us in the difficult times?

Christmas is indeed the story about the birth of our Savior, but it is one rooted in the context of relationships that made it all possible. 

Mary and Joseph; Sarah and Abraham, God and creation; it all comes down to loving those who walk with us. Relationships are what have sustained us for all of humanity and are the reason God spoke into the void and said Let us make humans in our image.

Individually and collectively, we know that there have been dark times where we were not certain the sun would in fact rise again tomorrow. War, famine, disease, homelessness, erasure of identities, death-the list goes on and on about all that is wrong around us and maybe even within us. And if we are honest with ourselves, we didn’t know if we would make it another day. But somehow, the phone rang with a sooner appointment; a friend was calling to check on you out of the blue; your child returned home from deployment sooner than expected, or the check came in the mail. The divine was at work, writing a chapter you knew nothing about. Your story is rooted in the miracles that happen in everyday life, and because of natural and divine relationships. Piglet, Pooh, and the whole crew came to understand that the best-made plans don’t always work out the way we planned. 

Life isn’t easy or neat. The fact that we are all in a relationship with someone means there will be arguments, unkind words, side-eyes, and frustration. But when things get messy and tough, we remember those who have held us down and kept us going. It wasn’t our own strength or will, but it was the village of friends and family we have built by birth and by choice that gave us what we needed. I don’t know what you asked for this Christmas, but I hope you find moments to think about how your life has been changed because of your friends who will go to and through the extreme just to see you smile. Like Winnie the Pooh, may they cross the snowy fields for you, chase the snowflakes, and ask for the things you dare not have the courage, all because you matter.

Rev. Trayce Potter

Rev. Trayce Potter currently serves as the Minister for Children and Youth Engagement for the national setting of the United Church of Christ. In this role, she gives oversight to curriculum development, leadership development opportunities, events including Youth@Synod, National Youth Event and Regional Youth Events, monthly gatherings for youth leaders around innovation and best practices. She also works closely with the Association for United Church Educators, the Network of Wider Church Youth Ministries and Our Whole Lives to advance to ministry and impact of children and youth in the United Church of Christ. Under Rev. Potter’s leadership, the United Church of Christ was the recipient of a $1.25 million grant through the Lilly Endowment to explore how the denomination nurtures and cares for children. This program, Love of Children, will run for several years and shape how the United Church of Christ welcomes and cares for its youngest members.