We have simply had a lovely week with our good friends Margo and Jeff from the United Kingdom. When they left yesterday…MJ and I and Aaron and Jonathon were sad to see them go…Mylo was low as well. He and Margo bonded over the week and he has looked longingly for her since her departure. Mylo is our Maltese. We had the fantastic opportunity to see our old friends Thelma and Brent as well as Brent’s daughter Hannah and her daughter Jules. The years melted away and I remembered Brent and my camaraderie and our time not only installing carpet together but also our time working on building our church in Elkville, Illinois.

Thanksgiving Day was great with Tara, Mike, Paige, Tyler, Ron, and Ira Kaye joining us. I learned the efficacy of drinking a shot and then one more Jack Daniels…for the young folks’ enjoyment. Brent told me at one point that many years had passed…and I asked him if he ever wondered where they went. I shared that sometimes I feel like I must be Rip Van Winkle and have subsequently slept part of my life away.

It seems surreal that Christmas is less than a month away and it seems that yesterday was Labor Day. Often we are so focused on making a living that we forget to make a life. We worry about our possessions and our bank account as we march toward the grave. We fret over missed opportunities when others look at us and wish that they had been afforded the opportunities that we have taken a bit for granted.

Christmas brings hope and peace…a reset for the coming year. How kind can we be in 2023? Focusing on one person at a time…how can we make their lives better…and make them feel seen and heard and appreciated.

Hungry people need food. Lonely people need another human to take the time to know them. It does not happen over a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. It does not happen during a Christmas Eve Church Service. It happens over days and weeks and months and years. It is somewhat like raising a puppy that you receive as a wonderful and exciting Christmas present. When the cold winds of January blow…many Christmas Puppies are returned or forgotten…and so it is with the broken souls of our neighbors and friends and indeed our family.

Heart Healing is the gift of the Maggi. A vision for love conquering loneliness and suffering and ultimately death.