Our latest Advent reflection comes from Paula McKeown, the ReStore Volunteer Coordinator in Newtownards. Read her Advent reflection below.
"I think you have a leak." Those five words marked the beginning of weeks of upheaval – leak detectors, plumbers, insurance assessments, endless Saturdays in hardware stores, and the weary work of removing everything damp and sodden from our home.
When the floors were finally stripped back to bare concrete and the temptation to feel sorry for myself was creeping in, a memory flooded back with unexpected force.
I was in Nicaragua, nearly twenty years ago, on a Habitat Global Village project. In broken Spanish, I was speaking with Marguerita, and her face lit up as she spoke about the home being built. What struck me most was her delight at having a floor she could sweep properly. The dignity of a floor that could be cleaned. A home she could truly call her own.
Standing in my stripped-back house, surrounded by the mess of privilege – insurance that would cover repairs, resources to replace what was damaged – I felt the sharp contrast. My inconvenience was temporary. For Marguerita, that concrete floor represented something I had always taken for granted: the simple dignity of a decent home.
Advent invites us to prepare room – room in our hearts, room in our lives, room in our world. As we wait for the One who had nowhere to lay his head, we're called to remember those who still lack that most basic human need: a safe place to call home.
My floors will be restored. But Marguerita's joy reminds me that Advent is not just about preparing our own homes for celebration, but about ensuring others have homes to celebrate in. In this season of preparation, perhaps the truest way to make ready is to build – with our hands, our resources, our solidarity – homes where dignity can dwell and families can flourish.
