Today is Christmas day. Today we celebrate the birth of a man born over two thousand years ago. Is it His actual birthday? No. But it’s the day we celebrate His birth and His life. He told us to treat others the way we would want ourselves to be treated. He told us not to judge others if we would rather not be judged ourselves. He told us we would do great things in His name. So, in His name, I wish you a Merry Christmas.
People ask me what I like about Christmas. The lights, the eggnog, the caroling, the shopping, the visions of Santas dancing and reindeer flying, or dozens of other bits. I like ’em all. I admit I’m real partial to the parties. But if asked what I enjoy the most about it, I have to say that I really enjoy the mistletoe.
The Christmas season is an amazing time. You’ve got Thanksgiving on the front, then Hanukkah and Christmas, and New Year’s Day on the end. To a lot of people, it’s a time to get together with family, to give thanks and enjoy the giving of gifts. Others celebrate God’s gift of His son to humanity. Others celebrate dedicating their temples and themselves to God. Many celebrate the ending of one year, looking forward to a new one. I love the whole season.
My family always told me that we were leaders of mankind. They told me that we were the best and we were the ones who mattered. Fighting the Shang, I found a different type of leadership. It is a leadership based on what you do, not who you are. If what you do inspires others to do better, to become better, to learn more, or to dream higher, in the end you are a leader. I like to think I became one during The War.
I grew up in a good family, in a good town, with a lot of nice people all around me. I went to school with them, I played with their sons and daughters, and I fished and water-skied with them. I partied with them, was a tourist guide, and a crazy big-city kid wrangler. All my life, I’ve always paid rapt attention to the people in my life. That is one of the greatest gifts we can give anybody.