My mother used to tell a story about making bed socks. I assume that these were lightweight slippers that people wore to bed.

The story was that my mother had made one bed sock and then another. They didn’t match, so she kept making more until finally she made two that matched.

I’m in that position now, working on the third slipper for The Little Boy.

I have two sole+sides and I’m making the third in hopes that it will match one or the other of the two.

Sigh. Either way I’ve lost at least a day of Christmas knitting.

Today’s song is “Advent Hymn” by Christy Nockels.

Christ whose glory fills the skies
Christ the Everlasting Light
Son of Righteousness arise
Triumph o’er these shades of night

Come Thou long awaited one
In the fullness of Your Love
Loose this heart bound up by shame
And I will never be the same

So here I wait in hope of You,
My soul’s longing through and through
Dayspring from on high be near
Daystar in my heart appear

Dark and cheerless is the morn
‘Till Your love in me is born
Joyless is the evening sun
‘till Emmanuel has come

So here I wait in hope of You,
My soul’s longing through and through
Dayspring from on high be near
Daystar in my heart appear

So here I wait in hope of You,
My soul’s longing through and through
Dayspring from on high be near
Daystar in my heart appear

This offers a completely different image of the Christ we’re waiting for during Advent. Not a baby at all, but the Dayspring, the Daystar, Emmanuel, God with Us.

The tune and the words together express the feeling of Advent for me as well as any of the classic Advent hymns. It’s a very singable tune, and you could sing it to yourself or bring in some friends and harmonize. A violin, a mandolin, a couple of guitars — or just you singing a capella.

I hope my slippers story will turn out better than my mother’s bed socks story. However, she always ended by saying that by the time she got a matching pair, she knew how to crochet. It was a happy ending.