Every year during the first weeks of December our clinic does “Secret Santa” for anyone who wants to participate. We have a great time imitating the jolly old elf by gifting small items to encourage the person we pick; yet remain anonymous. I happened to choose Cara, one of our social workers, who sits right next to me at work. Initially, I slipped onto her desk some chocolate and an ornament for her Christmas tree. Then one day while looking for books on Amazon, I found the perfect gift. I had overheard two of our other behaviorists teasing Cara about reading Amish novels while they were all traveling to a conference together. So when a Christmas collection of Amish novellas popped up online, I knew I had to buy it for her.
She is certainly not the only person drawn to Amish fiction. Their popularity over the past few years is amazing. What is it that captivates their readers? The portrayal of a simpler way of life is definitely part of it. However, just like the Hallmark channel movies, every story begins with an impossible challenge that ends in the best possible way. Good overcomes evil. Boy meets girl and they live happily ever after. All the classic fairy tales with rare exception, follow this same formula. Now these same stories remain popular for new generations as screenwriters retell them in movie theaters.
Deep within our souls is a longing for everything to be made right in the end. The cynics in society claim this thinking unrealistic given the multitude of problems in our world. But at Christmas time, the promise of “happily ever after” breaks into our reality. Jesus’ birth began the great redemption story. The sole purpose of his life and death were to make things right. On December 25, we celebrate the true Light coming into the world to overcome our darkness. Even though we don’t experience justice at this moment, as Billy Graham said, “I’ve read the last page of the Bible, it’s all going to turn out all right.
God has told us the end of the story. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”1 We love the happy endings in an Amish book or a Hallmark movie because they fulfill the deepest longing in our hearts. The hope of Christmas lies in the promise of renewal. Someday everything will be made new. The dream of “happily ever after” will become reality.
1Revelation 21:4
