Hello Chestermere!
As I try to deal with the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, buy gifts, bake cookies, and watch the little ones get more and more excited, I try to step back and think about what the greatest gifts we get from Christmas are. This poem from Helen Steiner Rice says it all:
“I have a list of folks I know, all written in a book
And every year when Christmas comes, I go and take a look
And that is when I realize that these names are a part
Not of the book they are written in, but really in my heart
For each name stands for someone who has crossed my path sometime
And in the meeting they’ve become the rhythm in each rhyme
And while it sounds fantastic for me to make this claim,
I really feel that I’m composed of each remembered name.
And while you may not be aware of any special link
Just meeting you has changed my life a lot more than you think
For once I’ve met somebody, the years cannot erase
The memory of a pleasant word or of a friendly face
So never think my Christmas cards are just a mere routine
Of names upon a Christmas list, forgotten in between
For when I send a Christmas card (email) that is addressed to you,
It is because you’re on the list that I’m indebted to
For I am but a total of the many folks I’ve met
And you happen to be one of those I prefer not to forget
And whether I have known you for many years or few,
In some ways you have a part in shaping things I do
And every year when Christmas comes, I realize anew,
The best gifts life can offer is meeting folks like you
And may the spirit of Christmas that forever endures
Leave its richest blessings in the hearts of you and yours”
Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Leela Sharon Aheer, MLA
