Hospitality in the age of Covid

My husband and I had carefully picked out and purchased the wines for our tasting. I had ordered little burlap bags to conceal the bottle’s labels and printed out the forms to make notes about each selection. I was so excited..

and then covid.

Our wine tasting was the final social event we cancelled on our calendars back in early March. That was the point when we officially fell off the cliff and into a year where hospitality was supplanted by solitude; when the ring of our doorbell sent a wave of panic through our home and “who is it?” morphed into “what do we do now?”

Last night I opened the drawer with my initialed holiday napkins inside and felt a tug at my heart. There they are.. all ironed, folded and ready for a holiday table that won’t be set this year. It got me thinking about all of 2020’s lost opportunities to get together with friends.. 😢

But today’s a fresh day and this morning I am challenging myself to imagine new and safe ways to practice hospitality; hospitality focused more on the state of our hearts and minds than the state of our home… the idea that becoming a better friend actually trumps becoming a better hostess. Maybe we CAN still practice hospitality in the age of corona.

From my ‘Handbook of Spiritual Disciples’ by Adele Calhoun:

“Hospitality creates a safe, open space where a friend or a stranger can enter and experience the welcoming spirit of Christ in another.” (That can happen anywhere.. like on a walk)

From the bible:

“Welcome one another just as Christ has welcomed you for the glory of God.” Romans 15:7 (How do you sound when you answer your phone–hello?)

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” Mark 12:31 (Baked too many cookies?..why not leave a plate at someone’s door or what about paying the tab for the person behind you at the drive-thru?)

“Stay on good terms with one another, held together by love.” Hebrews 13:1 (Have we sacrificed friendships at the altar of politics or Covid this year? Is it time for these relationships to be mended?)

From the internet:

The word hospitality comes from the Latin hospes, which came from the word hostis, which originally meant “to have power.” 

So yeah..I want my power back.