Amid the feasting and celebration, a few non-material things stood out this Christmas.
The first was an open house I attended where the guests represented a broad cross-section in terms of age, politics and backgrounds. And no one argued; they simply enjoyed each other's company! It was truly heartening -- even if the delicious and potent mixture of Champagne and cranberry juice may have helped things along a bit.
The second was a man who was sitting on a bench near the checkout lines at the Kennett Giant the day before Christmas Eve. He was holding something in his lap -- at first I thought it was a Chihuahua, but when I got closer I could see he was hugging two stuffed reindeer toys and stroking one, gazing down at it with the beaming, doting smile that I have when I'm cuddling my cats. My heart melted. He was probably the happiest, most content person in the store, which was full of harried shoppers worrying about things like whether the $75 rib roast would in fact serve 10 people.
Finally, my brother told me that the best present he received was the chance to spend time with the Young Relative running through the White Clay Creek Preserve on Christmas morning. I didn't spoil the moment by inquiring about times, distances or post-race discomfort.
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