God Jul
I have an aunt that's Swedish but strangely enough I didn't learn the phase 'god jul' from her. My sisters and I actually learnt it from one of those wonderfully sappy short romance novellas. I can't remember much of the story anymore--I have a feeling it involved a girl and two guys--but the phase has stuck with me.
I love it. I love any two words that signify in another language 'merry christmas'. Two that come to mind are the Spanish: Feliz Navidad, and the German: Fröhliches Weihnachten. Feliz Navidad sounds great with a Jaci V. pop tune and if you want to wish a merry christmas to anyone you don't particularly like all you have to do is utter Fröhliches Weihnachten in a deep gutteral tone and your message should be clear (a scowl at the end works well).
But God Jul. There's something about those two words that seems totally different. The first thing that strikes me is the fact that it has the word 'god' in it. I know our version has the word 'christ' in it, but somehow I never think instantly of Christ when I hear it. I see visions of green, red, and tinsel first.
God Jul, however, doesn't hide itself behind a facade of cultural implications. It says it plain and true: God. Any mistakes here what it's about? Then we have Jul. As soon as I say the word I think of 'jewel'. God Jewel. God's Jewel. Jewel of God. Is this a new way to look at Christmas? I'm not sure.
It's midnight here and if tradition is followed to the letter then I'm to be woken by some unmerciful person in five hours. I probably won't be able to figure it out by then--sleep has a way of shutting down my brain--but maybe one day I'll figure it out. Maybe one day I'll ask my aunt for the exact translation.
In the meantime I hope you all have a wonderful day. May you see the glory, the glory of the one and only.
God Jul.
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