The boy (my son) was very entertained that he didn't need to hide the gifts that he had bought my husband for Christmas. He simply left them on his desk in his bedroom and in all the muddle that is a 13 year old boy's bedroom the gifts were not obvious nor were they spotted by the intended recipient. Much more care was apparantly taken in hiding the gifts intended for me!
How often do we not see things which are obvious and visible either because we are not looking for those things specifically or because we get distracted by the general busyness or muddle of the circumstances in which we find ourselves.
I have been thinking how relevant this is to the spiritual life - God is hidden in plain sight. So often we are not looking for Him or when we are looking for him we become too caught up in the circumstances and the other things which we can see.
It is interesting to reflect on the Christmas story in this context. The shepherds and wisemen had to be directed to the Christ-child. Whereas Anna and Simeon recognised for themselves that which was hidden in plain sight. Did they recognise the Christ-child because they had spent so long listening to and looking for God. Were they able to "zone out" of the noise and distractions around them to see those hidden things.
I am wondering how very often I miss out on the things that are hidden in plain sight. If I lived a bit more slowly and watchfully I would spot them!
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