Christmas is Here

I just read a post about stealing. Stealing moments from life. Those moments life gives you that "feel so good and wholesome, so deeply satisfying that it almost makes you feel like you're cheating, like you stole it." Then I read a post about bringing in the Christmas season with a wonderful Christmas concert. And then I remembered . . .
This past Friday I went to visit family in Sullivan. I was helping Dave and Amanda by babysitting Julia and Ethan. Ben wasn't able to come with us, so it was one of those "looong" drives with the kids. I got there just in time for their Relief Society Christmas dinner. Husbands were invited and a nursery was provided and I stood there feeling a little awkward at first. But the branch quickly embraced me, making me feel welcome.
There was a short program following dinner. My sister, Karyn, was playing prelude music when I entered the chapel. My mom and dad sat on either side of me (my mom on the end so she could conduct the music), and my other family members sat on the rows just in front of me. A couple of sisters read some stories and excerpts and then my mom had a turn to read. And then my brother read. After each reading we sang a Christmas hymn. And at that moment, sitting in the chapel with the adults from my family, listening to their stories, singing Christmas hymns, I felt it . . . Christmas is here. Now . . . Christmas is here. Finally I felt the Christmas spirit. It was in the songs and harmony of my family. It was there all along. It is always there.