Dear Editor:

When we are young our questions flew out of our mouth very fast. Some were small, “Why?”, and some complex, “How does God talk to everyone on the same day, in different languages, and at the same time?”

We are entering the season that feeds the minds of children with songs, visits to the long lines to see Santa Claus and Gardens Aglow competing for attention in a rural state that rarely has street lights, much less multi-color displays at Botanical Gardens, and houses brightly lit, changing what it means to sleep in the dark.

In the midst of all of this, children six months away from graduation are wrestling with the path they will be taking that starts the journey of and meaning of their life.

Why do they call this the season of hope? For the children there is hope to see Santa and tell him what they hope for presents. For the parents there is hope their plans for the season are financially possible and for the commercial world there is hope their products will be perfect for every family that picks one and at the end of the month they will have been successful enough to open their doors again in the new year.

Christmas began in the third century. Was hope defined by gifts or was there something else that the world was waiting for and long sought for hope that would save everyone from a life filled with darkness that hid many fears and concerns? Was hope in the birth of a child who later forgave all sins and saved lives what people expected?

Hope has always promised love and a light that shines ahead and guides everyone down their path of life. We know and have seen that even in the times of unspeakable darkness, the path of light displays a radiance of peace and wonder.

This season of hope ends one year and begins another. Hope arrives on the 25th for all faiths who join in sharing gifts throughout the world. Is it the Festival of Lights that takes us all down our path of life? What is your path?

Jarryl Larson

Edgecomb