However, I kind of think of our preparations like that organizer's mantra from a few years ago of "does it bring you joy?" I would just like to tweak it a little bit to say, "can you rejoice with it?" As our pastor mentioned in his homily, if we are spending our time grumbling and complaining as we prepare for Christmas, then we are doing it wrong. We should not be forced into these celebrations, but instead we should be rejoicing to be a part of them.
In this Juan Diego is a great example. Everything about his world had changed in the years before the Blessed Virgin appeared to him. Everything he knew as a child and young man had changed. Mary provided a sign for him and his people to bring about rejoicing within that time of trials and upheavals. Juan Diego then shared that rejoicing with others.
This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.