I have, too.
This is a vibrant and abundant life with which I'm blessed. I have my family, and opportunity. It's warm in my house, in every way. There is food and music and laughter and love. In here, there's almost nothing I'd change.
But this has been a month of contradictions, and the world isn't always so perfect outside of my doors. There are some things going on right now that terrify me. They're not fair, and they're not nice, and they break my heart. Yet somehow, in this season, I cannot let go of the belief that any second, it could all get better.
I love Christmas because it's so representative of the resilience of the human spirit. I'm stricken by how, on our darkest days, we dress our homes in twinkly light. When it's coldest, we gather close our loved ones to sit by the hearth. We feast, even as the fields are most barren. It's a beautiful sort of defiance.
Christmas, to me, is evidence that in our nature is a refusal to be overcome by darkness and cold. Instead, we seek shelter in the security of our homes and families. We notice the magic around us. We celebrate that which is important and real.
Spring will come soon enough. It always does, and everything becomes new and alive and promising once again. But for the time being, I'm content to sit here with Gracie, watching for miracles.
