Christmas Eve

All day I have been in a dull sadness at the death of an old friend, yet every time I think of him all I can see is his smile. A life well-lived yet some difficulties and mistakes when he was young. But a man pf love qnd understanding who helped a lot of people along his way. Rest in peace, Holden. Your smile and memory lives in us. It is hard to imagine never seeing you again. It doesn’t seem possible.

This Christmas Eve those thoughts feed into this time – this nascent moment in the silence. We are at the edge of a new year, and more than that a new world. The changes of the last year have set up a new start – a lot of the old ways are gone and new ways are forming.

A child is born in all of us this time of year. A smiling child.