The double Christmas tree in my hometown of Sooke, on Vancouver Island, Canada

I have wished you all a safe and peaceful Dec 25^th. Admission: I tried to use the words ‘Merry Christmas’, however, the word ‘Merry’, tossed so glibly during our current time of humanity in crisis, was a stretch – an automatic muscle memory issued by rote, empty of the true greeting that wishing Merry Christmas was meant to invoke.

And so, I searched my handy thesaurus to find words relating to ‘merry’, and one in particular I could utter with unfettered goodwill. I found it at the tail end of expected synonyms: Happy Joyous Cheery Gleeful Cheerful Jolly Joyful Elated Ecstatic Thrilled Jubilant Pleased Glad Laughing Lively Delighted Exultant Wonderful Blissful Phantastic Enjoyable Carefree Heart-warming Overjoyed Euphoric Excited Over-the-moon Exhilarated Uplifted Strengthened Fortified Encouraged Enriched Heartened Elevated… and then, there it was, the word ‘Supported’.

I heartily wish you the continued nurturing support of loving family members, close friends, casual acquaintances, anonymous smiles, budding companions, caring colleagues, and the greater community of anonymous unselfish strangers committed to following the exacting rules of strict lockdown for the long haul.

May we be thankful for the support of endless entertainment on tap, a plethora of inexpensive e-books, inspirational stories, ground zero health workers, law enforcers, medics, modern medicine, scientists, truck drivers, postal workers, and essential workers manning the supply of food.

And in my hometown of Sooke on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, uninterrupted heating, clean water, sanitation and power, telephones, ferries, and the internet. 

Like so many families, my children and I have been separated due to adhering to essential social distancing since Covid descended eleven months ago. Merriment strikes a sour note during a season of devastating losses and hardships.