Hugs Before Christmas (( ))

December 16, 2014

Dear Sam and Max,

Sam’s Christmas ornament is on our tree in the perfect place for Pops and me to see it from our favorite chairs. Each time I look at the precise letters you printed in the words “I love…” and I feel like I’m getting a hug from both of you because when you write Sam, your concentration is as strong as it feels when you and Max squeeze me.

I’m writing this letter ten days before Christmas and I’m guessing that everyone in both your schools is excited and silly and loud and teachers and your parents seem to be using “time-out” way more often than they did before Halloween. That’s the thing about Christmas – excitement builds and builds like a campfire in your body until Christmas morning comes and whoosh – the fire inside is like the perfect fire for roasting marshmallows. You feel all glowy, and the world is quiet except for your family’s talking and laughing and sound of Christmas carols on the TV’s classic music station (I know your parents favorites).

My favorite Christmas carol on Christmas morning is “Away in a Manger” because after a baby cries his first cries and drinks his first meal, he sleeps and no matter where he is sleeping he looks so peaceful everyone around him wants to keep still. Of course he DOESN’T keep still. Babies wake up very loud when they’re hungry or need a diaper change, just ask your mom and dad. They will also tell you that it but soon enough the baby has a routine and is a part of the family and the world as if he has always been there.

And that’s the way it is after Christmas. We celebrate Jesus being born every December, and in the New Year we find ways to make him a part of our lives. We share what we have. We take turns listening. We’re kind - especially to the people other people are mean to. Adults sometimes act as if Jesus was born a grown up and perfect; but he was born a baby just like you both and Pops and me. Like us, he had parents who loved him, sent him to school and gave him chores, taught him to say his prayers, and encouraged him to be the person God created him to be. Well…actually, God created him to be a baby, then a boy, then a remarkable adult... but until it’s time to tell THAT part of His story, have a Merry Christmas and give lots of hugs!

Love, Marmee.