“O God, who hast caused this holy night to shine with the illumination of the true Light: Grant us, we beseech thee, that as we have known the mystery of that Light upon earth, so may we also perfectly enjoy him in heaven; where with thee and the Holy Spirit he liveth and reigneth, one God, in glory everlasting.”

It may be a cliche, but I think it’s true. The older you get, the less Christmas becomes about the presents and more about the presence. I’m always up for receiving a gift, but I think these days I get more excited about seeing other people’s faces light up when they open a gift that is especially meaningful. I still love that my nephews and niece are still young enough to have that gleam in their eye when it comes to presents.

Mostly, I love that we were all together in one place, celebrating the birth of the Messiah. I also got to see a video of extended family also celebrating the season with joy. If I’m honest when I look back, I can’t tell you what gifts I got five years ago, but I can tell you who was there. I may not remember how many presents I unwrapped, but I can just about close my eyes and call to mind all the faces from that Christmas Eve.

So I know that my heart is full, whether or not I get everything that was on my list. It’s been a great Christmas.