Christmas

What is Christmas? Is it a time of year? Is it Jesus' Birthday? Is it a feeling that really should be with us all year? Unlike Mabel, I have long since outgrown the need to count gifts, not sure that it ever was part of my nature. I do like picking out the right thing for someone, regardless of the price...just the right item.
We shouldn't need Christmas as an excuse to get together as a family. We shouldn't need Christmas to prompt us to be nicer to each other.
One of my best Christmas' as an adult was the year in Fresno when someone left us a tree on our doorstep. I had had more than a few years of pulling in someone's tree from the trash bins and celebrating Christmas after Jessica returned from Vermont. As a child I can remember waiting for the snow and having it start just before leaving for Midnight Mass. There was something about taking our naps and then getting up for Midnight Mass. When we would come home it was obvious that Santa has been there. I learned later that my dad would come home ahead of us (must have been on foot) and set up the gifts. It seemed real.
I don't recall my age when I stopped "believing" but I am sure my brothers had something to do with it. My dad will always be Santa as far as I am concerned.
So, remember that Christmas is best celebrated with loved ones and that $1 gift thoughtfully chosen means more than a $100 gift chosen for show. Love each other, smile and give what you can to the planet and to mankind.