The Arctic came for a visit, as it is wont to do – but it came a little too early for our collective liking. By me, the snow fell not as hard as predicted. The wind blew not as bad – but the biting cold overwhelmed both of those factors, and set winter firmly in place for the next week or so. As luck would have it, my lights stayed on and my wheels kept rolling. It was not like that for everyone – so we have to count this Christmas as a blessed one indeed.

Every little house looks so sweet with its new white roof and landscape. Yard by yard, block by block, the frigid dark glows with warmly colored lights festooning gutters and shrubs, watched over by inflatable lawn giants – Snowmen, Santas, Grinches. My neighbors put out Santa riding a dinosaur. I like where they are going with that.

I can’t tell what to think about Christmas. Is it too material or too much pressure? I think it’s a very good idea to get together with people you love, and eat pie and add a little nog to a hot drink – and give people things or otherwise do something that makes them smile.

I think it’s an equally good idea to remember that in long nights, something new and unexpected can be born. And to keep in mind that, whether you believe the story or not, it starts out with two young people about to become parents, who have nowhere to sleep, and no one to help them. I’m not sure about the rest of the story – but I believe that part. That good – even miraculous good – has the power to unfold, unpredicated in circumstance – through will, through love, and even just through luck.

That seems like plenty of Christmas to me.