I am living in a snowglobe. Every handful of minutes, the wind visits the alders and maples and evergreens surrounding our house and sends a shower of white billowing about. Inside this globe, I sit in front of the woodstove and watch the orange glow on the other side of the tempered glass. The sounds of David Lanz’s Christmas CD fills the house. To my left, our 15-foot Christmas tree towers. If I had my druthers, the massive fir would be draped head to toe in white lights; for the… Read More

I lose it two weeks before Christmas Day in the morning.

The kids string popcorn by the fire, untangle lights for the tree, curl sprays of shimmering ribbons, and I wildly dismantle the house. Losing a ring, a gift that had been sent to me from Iona Abbey, makes me lose it. Centuries of pilgrims had made the journey to the stone monastery in Iona, Scotland, to kneel low and pray long. And my Iona ring, a Celtic knot, was like a silver string around my finger, reminding me… Read More

Today my husband, Jim, and I went to the crafts store to buy Christmas decorations. We purchased one of those 12 foot, pre-lit faux trees that you can erect in 15 minutes, or so the box says. In truth, we still can’t get the bottom three rows of tree branches to light and we’ve been at this for over and hour!  

But, Christmas really is my favorite time of the year. The lights, the sense of anticipation in children’s eyes, and the pleasant demeanor of people make this time of the year… Read More