When I came up the stairs this Christmas morning, the sunlight was shining directly on the manger of the nativity set. Both my parents were able to see it before it moved away. We felt like it was God’s gift to us and reminder that He is truly with us. We started the morning like most Christmases for the past decades – with my mom’s Christmas bread. It wasn’t exactly like she makes it, but I did my best with her directing, and it was still a delicious treat. What we did after that was very different. After breakfast, we headed downstairs, started up the big computer, logged into the family Zoom session, and brought down gifts from under the tree. The whole family draws names for gift giving and we saved them for our get together. We started the unwrapping with the 4th generation – my grandchildren – and worked our way up to my dad. After that, my mom found her Christmas music and played the piano. Later in the day, my son and one sister came over for dinner. The weather was just gorgeous, so we were able to spend almost the entire time outside. We did end with another tradition. My mom’s friend shared a chocolate peppermint roll as she has done for years. So, I guess food and music can be a pretty stable part of life when everything else seems uncertain. We had a somewhat quieter, low-key Christmas day, but it was just the right amount of activity, laughter, and interaction for my parents to enjoy the holiday.

I Found God today in a simpler Christmas Day.