The Season of Darkness and Light
Choosing Merry, Making Bright
Image courtesy of Madara Parma via Unsplash.
“Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.”
’Tis the season of ironies, a season of both darkness and light. As we enter the darkest days of the year here in the north, we surround ourselves with bright twinkly lights to lift our spirits and celebrate another year gone by. December often passes in a blur of parties, concerts, baking, shopping, and decorating.
But this season of joy and celebration can often throw into stark relief the griefs and losses of the past year. This is a season of connection. But what about those who have lost the connections that matter most to them? How should they celebrate?
When you’re hurting, it is often the most difficult thing in the world to reach out and ask for help or even just set up coffee with a friend. But at this time of year, it may be the most crucial to make that effort, to not hibernate when you really need someone to remind you why your life is good.
For while people might want to offer that help to you and may even have the best of intentions, they may also be too distracted with taking care of the more pressing, urgent, and louder demands of the season to notice your quiet pain.
In all my many seasons of loss, one of the most effective tools I found for healing was to help another through their pain. Another one was to verbalize when I needed something that someone could help me with. Those I connected with appreciated both.
And if someone doesn’t, then ask someone else. Don’t just stop there. It’s when you are walking through those long winter nights of the soul that you find out who your true friends are.
Maybe you are relaxed and ready to ride out the season. Maybe you’re bustling around to make the season joyful and perfect for your loved ones. Or maybe you just hope to survive the blizzard of social and commercial activity and make it through to January (or March!). No matter where you are on the spectrum, I hope you make time to connect with someone who matters in a way that will bless you both.
December presents more opportunities and need for help than perhaps any other season of the year. Ring a Salvation Army kettle bell. Donate to the food bank. Find a charity that lets you bless others in some way. Or just reach out to that friend you’ve been meaning to have tea with all year and finally make it happen.
I encourage you, no matter what season your life you may be in, whether it be a season of darkness for light, look for ways to connect with those around you. For it is through connection that we know we are not alone and find we truly do have something to celebrate.
As we close out 2025, may you make your days merry and bright, for both yourself and those around you.
“Kindness makes a fellow feel good, whether it’s being done to him or by him.”
This post was originally published in the Books & Inspiration Newsletter on 2019-12-12.
New Song: The Promise of Christmas
You know, when I wrote that post six years ago, I must have been feeling much the same way I was last week when I wrote this new song, as they share a theme—the mixed grief and joy sparked by the celebrations of this season of darkness and light. I hope you enjoy this new song, and that no matter how complex this season may be for you, you still find reasons to celebrate.
“The Promise of Christmas” is a major-key Christian Christmas pop ballad about how the birth of Jesus brings a gentle but unshakable hope that all the hurt and heartache we feel most at Christmas will ultimately be healed. It gives congregations and listeners permission to be honest about their pain while still pointing them clearly to Christ as their hope.
Redemptive Christmas Fiction for the Real World
Looking for some Christmas stories that strike the balance between hope, the heartwarming, and the hard? Check out these two stories, both in the Peace Country Romance universe:
All I Want for Christmas
He only has one thing on his Christmas list…
Twelve-year-old Trevor has almost given up on finding a real family. When he gets put in a group home for problem kids, he writes a desperate letter to Santa to ask for help. But kids who get caught tagging walls don’t deserve parents, and Trevor’s sure he’s on Santa’s Naughty list.
Is a Christmas miracle still possible for Trevor?
“All I Want for Christmas” is a heartwarming family fiction novelette All I Want for Christmas by Talena Winters in eBook and audiobook.
“I need more books like this!” - Gail Taylor, Goodreads reviewer
Every Bell that Rings
Can his Christmas spirit banish her ghosts of Christmas past?
For Stephanie Neufeld, Christmas is more bah-humbug than ho-ho-ho. So when the crush who once ghosted her makes it his mission for his attending nurse to fall in love with the holiday, Steph couldn’t be more annoyed. But while Noel Butler’s strength, generosity, and selflessness slowly melt her reservations, she yearns to unwrap the secrets in his fiercely guarded heart. Will old fears keep Noel and Stephanie frozen in the past, or can they discover a warm new reason to celebrate the season?
Every Bell that Rings is the second standalone title in the sweet and clean Peace Country Romance series. If you like second chances, small towns, big heart, and a bit of grit along with your joy-filled white Christmases, grab a cup of cocoa and cozy up with this wholesome love story.
“I couldn’t put this story down; my tea got cold. I just wanted to hug everyone better.”
May your week/end be blessed, my friend! Wishing you love, joy, and peace.
