“It is the Season of the Spirit!
The message, if we hear it,
Is ‘Make it last all year!’”
– From “It Feels Like Christmas,” The Muppet Christmas Carol

Forgive me for quoting this same song two Christmastimes in a row, and, in fact, exactly one year (minus one day) after the last time I quoted it. 🙂

There is something magical about this time of year, isn’t there? It’s like a feast for the human soul, remembering what matters most, refreshing our commitment to it, and rejuvenating our strength, all at once. Every smile seems that much brighter, as every light does when it’s in the dark. It is a special time of love, caring, kindness, and charity. A truly wonderful time of year.

And there is a point to it.

The message of Christmas is not limited to caring for each other only once every year. We need to always care for each other. Always.

A starving, homeless man is not that much better off in summer than he is in winter.

A widow who has company at Christmas ought not to be left alone for the rest of year.

A child weeping in the summer sun needs help every bit as much as the one who weeps in the winter snows.

Christmas is a time for the spirit of love, and people need that spirit, that caring, kindness, and charity, every single day of every season, all throughout the year. We need it within ourselves, to carry our burdens. We need it among our fellows, to help with burdens that are too heavy for one person to bear alone. We need to have it, give it, and receive it. That is the light of human decency itself, offering warmth and comfort for everyone it might touch.

We need to keep that light lit even when things seem bright, as surely as we need it in the dark.

On that note, let us make of this season as happy a time as we might, for ourselves and those around us, and let us take that joy and comfort, and spread it throughout the entire year! 😀

Merry Christmas, everyone! 🙂