Category: Christmas

  • Are you finding it difficult to get into the spirit of Christ-mas? Me, too.

    Consider this an intervention. 

    Take a few minutes to watch these preschoolers answer questions. (I dare you not to smile.)

    Charming young children, unscripted answers, what's not to love? Oh sure, they were a bit fuzzy on the details.  

    Still, in their innocence and simplicity they have the essence of the miracle of Christmas: Jesus came.

    Jesus Christ, truly and fully God from before Day One of Creation, chose to come to earth as a human child, born to a human mother.

    Jesus, born as a baby in a stable in Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-20.) Born like any human infant to a human mother. Mary, who was a virgin and chosen to be his mother. You see, Jesus was the Son of God. (Luke 1:26-38.)

    Joseph's part in the story was that the angel told him he would be Jesus' earthly father and he then married Mary (Matthew 1:18-25.) 

    Have we heard these readings so often we forget it's a miracle story?

    What gets into us adults that we lose our marvels? 

    Blame it on thoughts of shopping and decorating and keeping up with family traditions. They shout so loudly they drown out the quiet meaning of Christmas. 

    Do you recognize these questions?

    • What will I give her? And him? 
    • How much will these gifts cost? Am I spending enough to show I really care? 
    • Will they like what I give them??
    • I simply have to cook and bake all the family favorites when they come home because that's what they expect. That's what makes it Christmas. 
    • Christmas cards and letters! I need to get them written and mailed in time! And what about photos?
    • I'm exhausted already. How will I ever get it all done in time? 

    It's that last question that gets us down

    Here's what I've learned over the years–with help from friends and family members. 

    • The best and most lasting gift any of us can give is our love and encouragement. These cost zero dollars. 
    • What we spend–or don't spend–is unimportant. Even young children  who clamor for the latest toys on TV always lose interest in any item after a few days.
    • Recognize that adult and young-adult children are adults and young adults. They will manage to cope even if we don't fulfill their favorite gift requests. (We do, don't we? We know their gifts come with love.)
    • Cooking everything from scratch does not prove love.
    • It's a sure thing that this will not be the only chance our loved ones will have all year to eat a good meal.   
    • We can decide to start a new family tradition. Making it easier on ourselves will make it calmer when we're together. (No guilt because Mom looks exhausted.) That makes it more fun for all the family.

    Truth flash: Our kids don't come home for the food

     Whatever the ages of our children, they come home for the love.

    What they long for most of all is affirmation as individuals. The reminder that they belong. The confirmation that we, their parents, love them as they are.

    • We say it aloud: We love them as they are. That's the biggest gift we can give our adult children.
    • Are they perfect? No, they're human. Like their parents. 
    • Do we like them as people and/or appreciate their sense of humor or whatever? Then we say so. 
    • Are we pleased or proud about something they've done or are doing? Let's commend them and cheer them on, even if we've said the same thing before.
    • Are they going through a hard time or a scary passage in life? Let's reassure them that they're not alone. Jesus is with them, every step of the way. (Even if/when they know it, it's good to hear us speak it.)
    • First, last and always, let's tell them we pray for them every day and we know God's watching over them. (Then let's keep our promise.)

    But nobody ever did that for me

    Sadly, that's true for many of us. We still may long to hear such words from our own parents. Some of us never will, either because our parents have died or are out of our lives, or because they're incapable of opening up about their emotions. 

    Then we have a choice. We can grieve and bemoan what we lack.

    Or we can forgive our parents and start fresh. Their ways don't have to be our ways.

    We give our children and those that matter to us a great gift when we simply say those words of love we ache to hear, not just once, but often.

       And in the speaking will be the healing for us and a blessing for them. 

    God still uses ordinary people

    God used ordinary people, Mary and Joseph, carry out His plan. People like you and me.

    Jesus told us we are to be salt and light in the earth. We ordinary people are to "season" the world around us and shine the sunshine of God's love where we are. 

    That starts right where we are. Married or single, with or without children, there are folks around us who need us to live true to who we are in Jesus. 

    Christmas is more than a season. It's the miracle of God come to earth to live among us.

    Christmas is all about God's plan

    It's about Jesus, God come to earth in human form, to be our Savior and Lord. 

    For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  –John 3:16  ESV

    Dear reader, this year when you hear the Christmas story may you feel the awe and wonder of a little child. Jesus came for you!

    And for me,

    Lenore

    Learning about Christmas from a few preschoolers

  • Am I the only one who thinks this week of the year feels a bit unreal?

    I always have. It's not Christmas anymore–and it's not Dreamstime_xs_141317 (480x319)
    quite time for the New Year, either. Family gatherings are over and all the special events are past. After-Christmas sales beckon, of course, but even champion shoppers eventually tire of the sport. Or run out of money. 

    Then what?

    I unearthed an old piece I've loved for years in which an unknown writer offers suggestions that always keep me thinking. The original title was, "This Christmas …" but I think these timeless words fit any season.   

    HOW TO LIVE IN THE YEAR AHEAD

    • Mend a quarrel.
    • Seek out a forgotten friend.    
    • Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust.     
    • Write a love letter.
    • Share some treasure.
    • Give a soft answer.
    • Encourage youth.
    • Manifest your loyalty in word and deed.
    • Keep a promise.
    • Find the time.
    • Forego a grudge.   
    • Forgive an enemy.
    • Listen.
    • Apologize if you were wrong.
    • Try to understand.
    • Scorn envy.
    • Examine your demands on others.
    • Think first of someone else.
    • Appreciate.
    • Be kind; be gentle.
    • Laugh a little.
    • Laugh a little more.
    • Deserve confidence.
    • Fight malice.
    • Decry complacency.
    • Express your gratitude.
    • Go to church.
    • Welcome a stranger.
    • Gladden the heart of a child.
    • Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth.
    • Speak your love.
    • Speak it again.
    • Speak it still once again.

    Those last three lines say it all, don't they? 

    Isn't that why we love the Christmas season? The gifts we gave, the Christmas cards we sent and received speak of L-O-V-E.  So do those notes and Emails to (or from) people we care about.

    It doesn't matter how we connect. Telephone calls can charge us up because we hear the caller's voice. Just hearing dear voices can keep us smiling for a long time.

    So why wait until next year to reach out to them again? 

    Every Christmas the world around us feels more loving. That's fitting because  Christmas is all about love, as the blazing star over that humble manger reminds us.

    The Christ child, God come to earth, is the ultimate proof that what we read in 1 Corinthians 13 is true: Love never fails. God's love never fails.  

    Now there's a glow that lasts, through all time, through every week of every year.

    As for what do we do with this week? Or any week?

    Let's not waste a minute. Let's live!   

    Blessings to you,    

    Lenore

       

    What shall we do with this week of “suspended animation?”

  • I wish I could say I mailed off the last Christmas letter today.

    Notice, "I wish I could say … "

    Not yet. Blog. Rural mail carrier stamp. 12.15

    I love Christmas cards and letters in any form at all. Hearing from friends and loved ones is one of my favorite things about Christmas.

    Are they worth the effort?

    I remember…


    For many years of my life I lived in the Midwest, in the middle of farming country.     

    No computers or Internet back then and all telephones were land-line. Few people made long-distance calls that went over the 3-minute limit. Too expensive. 

    But then and now, country folks had R.F.D., Rural Free Delivery of the mail.

    Rural mail carriers are tough. They drive long daily routes and deliver mail to every house along their appointed route, almost no matter what the weather. 

    No wonder our "mailman" was our hero

    As a child I watched for ours with daily anticipation. After all, he might bring us something exciting from the outside world! 

    Like letters. Magazines. The daily newspaper. 

    Twice a year my hero brought big fat catalogs from Sears. And Montgomery Ward. And Spiegel.

    In cold December he delivered patches of warm sunlight disguised as Christmas cards and letters.

    Every day I saw and heard the worth of Christmas greetings. I watched my parents as they read every Christmas letter sometimes with laughter, sometimes with tears. Then one would ask the other, "Remember when … ?" and retell old stories.

    As a little girl it seemed magical that people we hadn't seen for years at once felt close again.

    A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.  Prov. 17:17

    Light in the winter darkness

    As an Illinois farm wife I lived miles away from my family. Years later my husband I moved our family far from our Midwestern roots. After that came several job-related moves on the West Coast. 

    No matter. 

    Wherever we've lived, when we pick up our December mail and find Christmas cards and letters, I think exactly what I thought as a child: They haven't forgotten us. We still matter to them. This person loves me/us.

    I love what C. S. Lewis said:

    “Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art… It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.”  

    In a world that sometimes feels cold and impersonal, simple Christmas greetings bring warmth and joy

    Both the frenzy of sending and the joy of receiving remind us again that people matter more than anything. 

    Just a simple note can bring joy. A line or two, perhaps, "Thinking of you and sending you love and blessings," is enough.

    So I make no apologies.  I crave that heart-to-heart communication across the miles, whether it arrives in a stamped envelope or as an E-mail.

    And I'll bet you do, too. (Aren't we all the same under the skin?)

    My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.  –John 15:12

    And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.  –Luke 6:31

    It's never too late to start again

    With red face I admit if I were an airline I'd be out of business. This last year or so almost every greeting I've sent arrived late. It's time I reprogram my software.

    So I'm gearing up to send good old hold-in-your-hand Christmas greetings to convey what's in my heart.

    In an age of technology that sounds old-fashioned, but who knows? Maybe I'm on the cutting edge.

    Sometimes they look a lot alike.

    Question: How about you? Please, tell us how you communicate love and joy at Christmas.

    Merry getting-ready-for-Christmas, 

    Lenore

     

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  • Peel away the tinsel and take a fresh look at Christmas

  • Most of us could use a transfusion of smiles and energy about now. So sit back, put your feet up and watch these beautiful children. You won't want to miss a move.  

    Even if you've seen this before, I promise it will make you smile all over again and give you an energy lift.

     

    Fifth-graders who live in the Yupik Eskimo village of Quinhagak, Alaska, pop. 555 at the 2,000 census, put this together as a school computer project, intended for other Yupik villages in the area. 

    By now more than 1,200,000 people have viewed this performance of the "Hallelujah" chorus from Handel's Messiah.

    Take a moment to marvel at what God can do with the work of one individual.

    In 1741, George Frideric Handel considered himself something of a failure. Then he composed the entire score of Messiah over a period of 24 days. He is said to have felt God gave him the music, but he could not predict how this music would endure.

    He could not have imagined that 360 years later, Eskimo children in a small Alaskan village would treat us to this creative performance accompanied by a choir singing the "Hallelujah" chorus.

    Tthe teacher of this class in that small Eskimo school could not foresee anyone in any other place would ever see this video.

    There's a lesson here for you and me

    As  individuals and as moms and dads we cannot know what God will do with our work–or our child's work.

    Handel composed many other musical works, but  only his "Hallelujah" chorus is sung and hummed all over the world. His Messiah is performed every Christmas season by choruses and choirs in huge cities and in tiny villages on every continent. At the time he could not have guessed the value of his work.

    I can't help thinking of this Bible verse.

    For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.     –Ephesians 2:10

    That verse wasn't aimed only at Handel and other famous people. It speaks to you and me, too.

    Think you're on a treadmill and going nowhere?

    Perhaps today you question the value of your life. Maybe you're facing your first Christmas alone after losing a loved one.

    If you're a mom, your family most often notices what you do when you don't do it. Put a positive spin on that. Being taken for granted also means your family knows they can count on you.

    Forget looking elsewhere to find your particular "good works." You're living with them. What's more, the family life you create, the love you pour into your days will live on in your children. Every day you are coloring their lives–and their picture of life.

    Joy comes from giving ourselves fully and from knowing that what we do matters, whether we see the end result or not. God is faithful. What we do in faith will live on, one way or another.

    Believe it. Let that truth put fresh energy in your tired body.

    Then look again at the smiles on the faces of those Eskimo school children and sing Hallelujah! in your heart.

    Someone needs us, needs our kind words, needs our encouragement. Those are gifts, too.

    Now, let's enjoy this wonderful Christ-mas season of giving ourselves,

    Lenore

     

    Declare a “joy break” and refresh your heart

  • Around this time of year, as we look at our To Do lists, I expect some of us long for a "shot of Christmas," to get us energized.

    I don't have a magic potion, but this YouTube should do the trick. You may have seen it, but if you take time once again, I promise you'll find yourself smiling by the end. 

    Are you smiling?

    Some of us have been hearing or singing Handel's Messiah for years, especially Hallelujah. Not so many know the story of how Handel came to write this glorious music.

    Picture the scene. It is the summer of 1741, in a small house in London. Discouraged and miserably in debt, 56 year-old George Fredric Handel considered himself something of a failure. Not long before he had given what he thought of as his farewell concert. Then a friend passed on a libretto based on the life of Christ. Its writer hoped someone could write music to go with his script, all of it quoted from The King James Bible. 

    Handel, a strong believer in Christ, read it through and was deeply moved. So on August 22nd, he set to work composing. After that no one saw him except the servant who faithfully brought him food, then every day removed the untouched tray.

    One day the servant opened the door to find his employer with tears streaming down his face. Handel said, "I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself."

    GeorBlog. Handel. 12.10 -thumb-400x501-9945ge Frederic Handel uttered those words just after completing the movement that ever after has been known around the world as the Hallelujah Chorus.

    He wrote the entire work in an amazing 24 days. In that short span of time Handel not only personally inked each note of the four-part vocal score, but also the music and every instrumental part for the orchestra. (If you've sung the Messiah, you know just the choral arrangement plus piano accompaniment runs to more than 250 pages.) Whether we call it genius or divine inspiration, for more than two centuries this piece of music has been performed all over the world.

    Handel died April 14, 1759, eight days after his final performance where he conducted his mansterpiece, Messiah. If you visit Westminster Abbey in London, look for his statue. He's shown holding the manuscript for the solo that opens part three of Messiah, "I know that my Redeemer liveth."

    It seems to me we can draw some lessons for ourselves. At the time, Handel would have been considered elderly and people around him considered him finished. So did he. It seems he never said, "Well, I can't do that because . . ." Maybe we, too, need to set aside our labels and our familiar thinking and step out in faith. Otherwise, who knows? We might miss out on doing something great.

    As for getting in the mood for Christmas, I know what I need to do. I need to take my eyes off how much I have to do and focus on what Christmas really means. The Joy-Giver is just as capable of giving meaning and joy to our work as He was back in Handel's time. Sure, our "tune" may be small, but the world around us needs to hear it. So let's smile and give thanks, then go for it!

    Comments?

    Here's to letting our JOY show in this most wonderful time of the year,

    Lenore

     

    Need an injection of Christmas spirit? Find it here . . .

  • I confess. I have Christmas cards and letters still waiting toBlog. christmasholly9. 12.09 be mailed and gifts to be wrapped. (And please, could we not talk about my list of neglected everyday chores?)

    If you're sharing this uncomfortable boat with me, you may be thinking, "Now if I can just get through Christmas…"

    That's a trap. As soon as we do that we rob our days of the joy that comes with reading letters from friends and thinking how to please the people we love. I think it's time for a vision adjustment and a transfusion. (Sorry, I can't produce an extra five or six days…)

    Pause for breath and let's drink in some energy for our spirits:

    Probably the reason we all go so haywire at Christmas time with the endless unrestrained and often silly buying of gifts is that we don't quite know how to put our love into words.  Harlan Miller

    It is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child himself.        Charles Dickens

    This is Christmas: not the tinsel, not the giving and receiving, not even the carols, but the humble heart that receives anew the wondrous gift, the Christ.     Frank McKibben

    Take Christ out of Christmas, and December becomes the bleakest and most colorless month of the year. A. F. Wells

    The Light that shines from the humble manger is strong enough to lighten our way to the end of our days. Vita-Rays 

    God rest you merry, lovely readers. Let us rejoice-in-the-midst of the rubble all around us. That same Light will power our personal "energy cells," one day after another.

    Question for you: What's your biggest hurdle in this wonderful Christmas time?

    Lenore

    Are you running out of steam before Christmas?

  • I saw Santa yesterday, but this one didn't look like the pictures you see. First I saw his decked-out van. If I had the presence of mind to remember that my fancy-schmancy new cell phone has a camera, I could show you what I saw. Blog. christmas_lights_truck-12048.12.09This will have to do. 

    Imagine a nondescript old gray work van, elaborately decorated from stem to stern with roping of fresh evergreens. The roping extended down from the roof over the hood, too, plus battery-operated Christmas lights. Small stuffed animals adorned every door handle. On top stood a figure of Santa Claus, maybe eighteen inches tall. After I parked on the other side of the row of cars and faced this marvel, I sat staring in fascination, wondering what and who…

    That's when the driver walked up.

    As he stuffed papers in the back pocket of his well-worn blue jeans, he smiled, then rubbed his forehead. For that moment I got a good look at the grizzled, fifty-ish man with leathery skin. He stood tall and skinny and wore an old, plaid wool shirt, jeans, a red wool cap with ear-flaps drooping and battered work boots. Then he climbed into his van, slammed the door and threw the truck in reverse. Only then did I understand he was Santa.

    That's when I could see that the back of the van was crammed with toys, from top to bottom. They even peeked out from the passenger window side of the van. All I saw through his rear window was packed-in toys. Clearly, this Santa was making a delivery and sooner or later, many kids would be whooping with delight.

    Then this morning's Sacramento Bee ran the story of an 82-year old Santa, a woman who watched a television show about the homeless and started knitting. Because of her talking to friends, who talked to their friends, a network of older individuals picked up their needles. Now this Santa can deliver hundreds of hand-knitted caps, scarves and to our local Loaves & Fishes.

    Christmas brings out the best in all of us, doesn't it? As individuals and through our churches, we collect food and pack baskets. We reach out through countless charity organizations that bring joy to children and families. Our sensitivity radar picks up and we glimpse needs we were blind to before.

    There's a special joy, I think, when we give a gift and don't identify ourselves. Part of the fun is knowing a secret. Sometimes we even hear the recipient(s) speculate about who might have done this. That's when we get to practice keeping a straight face.

    Here's the question: Do you know any Santas like this? Or have you ever played this part?go

    Why not share that joy with the rest of us? (Just go to "Post a Comment" and follow directions.)

    In the midst of the wonderful Christmas bustle, may you feel the Light of Christmas,

    Lenore

    I saw Santa yesterday, but…

  • Probably you, like me, look at your December calendar and groan, wondering how you'll do all the things you want to do and go all the places you want to go. But hey, it's Christmas and miracles still happen. Somehow, amazingly, you and I will manage to do it all–or most of it–as we do every other year.

    Imagine you and I were not here, sleeping in our comfortable beds, warm and toasty as we enjoy extra times of celebration with family and friends. Suppose we were hunkered down in Afghanistan or Iraq, or some other far-off place, away from the people and the life we love. Cold. Lonely. Constantly on alert, not knowing who may be planning to blow you up when your back is turned. Can you feel the chill in your bones–and maybe your heart? Can you imagine how often you pray God will preserve Blog. .121.09troops-prayingyour life? 

    That describes daily life right now for thousands of members of our Armed Forces. We pray for their safety and safe return, but I think most of us feel helpless to make even a small difference. So I have good news!

    You may have heard of a wonderful project called "Let's Say Thanks." Because of the creativity and generosity of one of those "heartless" big businesses, you and I can send a greeting to a member of the military–and we don't even need to have a name and address. If you go to www.letssaythanks.com (or go to the green box at the side of this blog, which has a link) you will find a large assortment of charming postcard designs drawn by children across the United States.

    First choose a design. If you don't know what to say, check the preprinted messages. Better still, write your own and add a personal touch. Your few lines of thanks and caring can mean the world to one alone and not sure what the next moment will bring. If you like, add a Bible verse and say that you pray for the recipient of your card and for our Armed Forces. Then one more click and the folks at Xerox will make sure your card is delivered to a member of the U.S. Armed Forces in locations around the world. If you need more information, click on "FAQ" at the top right corner of the website. You'll find the answers to most of your questions there. On the website you can read letters from some of the troop members who've received these cards and see whether these greetings mean anything to them. 

    As easy as that you and I can send a little bit of home and bring a smile. It costs us nothing but a few moments of our time–and let's not stop with just one.

    My husband and I are the proud grandparents of eight terrific young people. Two of our granddaughters, sisters, are in the Navy. One is serving her second tour with Naval Intelligence and stationed here in the States. The other is in field support with the Marines. She served one stint in Kuwait and thank God, recently returned from duty just outside Baghdad. We applaud Xerox for providing what's needed to make it possible for these bits of cheer  from home folks will be delivered to our troops. Let's hear it for Xerox!

    By the way, you may not agree with having U.S. troops anywhere. As Americans each of us is entitled to our opinion. In fact, protecting that freedom is part of why our troops serve. The point is that these individuals, many of them married and with children, are far from home and alone. They are there because they believe in what the United States stands for and want to protect it…and us.

    Most of us would agree that God's blessing has rested on this nation from the beginning. God works through people, both our troops and us. Here's one way you and I can bless the life of one or more members of our Armed Forces.

    After all, how often do you and I get to be the sunshine in a dark place?

    Happy Getting-ready-for Christmas and God bless you,

    Lenore

    Question: Do you have a loved one serving in the military? Please tell us about them and where they're stationed.

    Light up someone’s life for free–and warm your heart, as well

  •     Today is Christmas Eve, and just the words trigger so many memories for me. You see, my father was a pastor, so naturally our family life centered around our church. My earliest Christmas memories center around the small country church across the road and down just a bit from the parsonage in which we lived. We knew every family living within miles, and they Blog. St. John. Iosco.knew us.

         Most Sundays my mom played the organ, since, as everyone said, she could "make that  old organ talk!" Often my dad would not only preach a sermon, but also sing a solo, since he possessed a glorious tenor voice. For Christmas he'd sing, "The Birthday of a King," or "Oh, Holy Night," always to a hushed congregation. None of this seemed remarkable to me. These were my parents, doing what they did.   

        Christmas Eve centered around the children's program. We would practice for weeks, memorizing our "pieces," and the words to the Christmas songs we sang as a group. Anxiety would grip our little group–and our parents. Would we remember to go forward when it was our turn? Would we freeze when we looked out on that huge congregation of perhaps seventy-five people? Older kids got to recite the Old Testament prophecies, the ones with the big words. We sang "Away in a Manger," "Silent Night" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and of course, "Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful," and so many more.

     Blog. Iosco. Daddy. me. snow. Iosco church0002[1]    Did we have a white Christmas? Well, of course. It was Minnesota, after all. In that simpler time, shepherds of small flocks often also got to be shovelers of snow on church steps and walks. I'd tag along, stepping on the just-cleared spaces. I remember walking from our home to the church across that country road, our footsteps crunching and squeaking in the snow.

        With frost etching the windows, Bethlehem seemed very far away. To think of shepherds out on green hills, watching over their flocks of sheep seemed impossible to me, since to me, Christmas and snow went hand-in-hand.

        Yet we spoke and we sang of times and places far away … and somehow, we knew the truth of the familiar words of Luke 2:1-20. I could picture the scene. That lowly stable, filled with smelly cows and sheep and donkeys, and in the midst of it all, Mary and Joseph with the newborn baby Jesus, wrapped in cloths and lying in the manger full of hay. 

         Every year since I can remember, I've treasured the thought of the glory of the Lord shining around those shepherds and an angel appearing to them, announcing:

          Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign unto you; You will find the baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.

        Suddenly the sky was filled with angels, all praising the Lord. Only the lowly shepherds heard their glorious music, not the rulers, not the "important" people of the town.

        That still speaks to me. No matter who we are, or how many times we've messed up, or what's going on in our lives, the same Good News of Christmas applies. The Savior is born–to us! His love waits for us. He waits for us … and all he wants is for us to open our hearts to Him.  

        It's Christmas Eve. Time for new beginnings. Time for you and me to come to that tiny Child in the manger and kneel in wonder, as the shepherds did. That's all it takes, and the same peace and joy they felt can be ours, not just for a season but for always.

        Christmas Eve memories live on. So does the timeless Christmas story.

        I wish you a Blog. 90_18_74---Christmas-Candles_webMerry, Merry Christmas, and may your spirit be bright!

        Lenore

        Your comments welcomed!

        

    Remembering Christmas Eves past …