/*from pinterest*/
 “I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”

― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

One of the happiest Christmases I remember was flying home to Canada after spending four months trekking through Europe and North Africa.

I had ended up with a group of eight Canadians and four Americans and we spent Christmas Eve in the Spanish Sahara at a naval base. The next day we were able to fly out to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands. I was out of money and my mom wired me funds to a bank in Las Palmas. By January 5th, I had a flight to Toronto, Canada via New York City, USA. As the jet was touching down in New York, the speakers on the plane came on with: “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas”. Everyone cheered and clapped.

A few hours later, my brother picked me up at the airport in Toronto and drove me back to our farm in southwestern Ontario. By then it was January 6th, the feast of Epiphany or, as some call it, Little Christmas. My mom still had the Christmas tree up.

I wish you a merry Christmas. I hope you get to spend it with family and friends. If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, I hope you have snow to play in. Wherever you are, I hope you have clear night skies and stars to count. And I hope you have someone who will have a Christmas Tree for you.

(photo from istockphoto.com #21831888)