Signs of Joy and Hope

We are approaching the season of Advent, which signals the eventual arrival of Jesus at Christmas. The Birth has already taken place, but symbolically and prophetically we celebrate with three weeks of preparation for it, with an eye toward the Second Coming. The Advent wreath, the color purple, the readings from Isaiah serve as Advent signs of the coming of Jesus as do the buds on the fig tree, signal the coming of summer. In our current culture where Christmas Carols and decorations already saturate our stores, radios and homes, it is hard to "fit in" and give this waiting time its proper place.  We have "jumped the gun", albeit too soon, and miss the point of adequate preparation by way of times of silence, prayer, a visit to a church or chapel, a quiet reading of Isaiah or some other devotional book which will slow us down and stir up our realization of what the coming of God as a human being really entails.  Again, taking so much for granted, moving too fast (as we do with everything) and losing the significance of this most important event,  how can we find joy and hope, hungering and thirsting, if we don't take time to delve into the Mystery?
Bro. Rene