One of my favorite things about this time of year is the twinkly lights. I love the light imagery abundant in the midwinter holidays—the strands woven through bushes and strung along eaves, the Hanukah and Advent and Saint Lucy candles, the Yule logs. For those of us who sometimes feel keenly the dark and the cold, the shadow parts of ourselves, those holiday lights are a tonic and reminder to stoke our own fires.
“Each of us is born with a box of matches inside us,” Laura Esquivel wrote in Like Water for Chocolate, “but we can’t strike them all by ourselves.”
Friends, in this holiday season and always, may you find the people and things that light you up, and keep them close at hand. Walk away from those who blow out your matches. Keep burning in the heart of winter.
the saltwater twin 
Yes please & thank you!
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You are a match striker and lighter up of everyone around you!
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sweet maia!
btw, got some good gnus today- my daughter Jenny (17 year-old senior ) got accepted to American University in DC (her first choice) and is happy as a clam!
have a fine holiday! Larry Evans
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Congrats to Jenny and a fine holiday to you, too!
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Love this Mai! As you know, I’ve been giving myself permission to walk away from (or approach differently) tasks and obligations that blow out my matches, too. Thanks for your help with that 🙂
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Thanks and you’re welcome.
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What a wonderful post. THANK YOU for putting together such a lovely piece.
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Barbara, thank YOU for visiting and reading! Happy Holidays to you!
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