For unto us a child is born; unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
As I type those words, I can hear them in Handel's magnificent The Messiah, and it makes my heart thrill! So many bad things have happened in my life this year that I need the story of Christmas to bring me back to what is good. Christmas is good for my soul! Not Christmas, as in holiday trappings and presents and commotion, although there is certainly plenty of that. Christmas, as in beautiful music, quiet moments, and reflection on the greatest gift God bestowed upon the world: Jesus, the Christ.
I am reminded of Christmases as a child with people that I loved so dearly. I remember every Christmas concert that I ever sang in, and one very special concert in the gym of Washington Elementary School in Pontiac, IL, when my then-7-year-old daughter stepped up to a microphone and sang, in a clear and lovely voice, a verse of the song The Friendly Beasts. I remember Christmas in Japan, Christmas in California, Christmases in Illinois and Indiana, and just last year, Christmas in Florida where we watched the sun come up on the beach and fed the hungry gulls.
Every Christmas, no matter where, had one thing in common: traditions, and the celebration of the birth of our Lord, Jesus. My parents, grandparents, and brother are gone now. My daughter is many hundreds of miles away. Still it is Christmas in my heart.
I pray that Christmas will be in your heart, too.
"God bless us, every one."
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