Think of it as Yoga for the brain, we are going to stretch a bit.
So This Is Christmas
(More or Less) –
and Some XMAS Songs
“Christmas isn’t about perfect people or perfect years—it’s about imperfect people choosing to gather anyway. Flaws are not failures; they’re proof you were real." --YNOT!
So this is Christmas.
Another year wrapped up, tagged, and shoved into the attic with the decorations. Bells are ringing, candles are lit, and everyone is asking the same quiet question—what have we done with the time we were given?
The answer, if we’re being honest, is our best and our worst, often in the same afternoon.
Confucius—who never had to host a holiday dinner, but understood people anyway—put it plainly: better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without. Which is another way of saying that perfection is cheap, and character costs something.
Nobody is perfect. Not the kids, not the parents, not the relatives who arrive early and leave opinions behind like coat lint. Some folks shine even with cracks; others are smooth, agreeable, and somehow hollow. Christmas has a way of revealing which is which—usually right around dessert.
And yet here we are.
Friends and family near and far. Old faces, new faces, and the empty chairs we still set in our minds. We say happy holidays, we offer peace on earth, we hope for goodwill to all, and we mean it—at least until the next political comment hits the table like a dropped ornament.
But the message holds: if you want peace, start small. Be kind. Let things go. Enjoy the moment. Don’t demand flawlessness from people who showed up anyway.
This season isn’t about perfect years or perfect families. It’s about getting through another one together. About laughter between arguments. About warmth in imperfect rooms. About choosing love, again, even when the wrapping paper is torn.
So this is Christmas.
The year is nearly over. The new one waits quietly outside the door. Be grateful for the diamonds in your life—even the chipped ones. Especially the chipped ones. They’re the ones that last.
And to my Jewish friends—this needs no explanation. You’ve been taught this wisdom for centuries. שָׁלוֹם לְכֻלָּם Shalom le’kulam — Peace to all
