Karen Wils photo At right, snowshoeing on the snowy river.

ESCANABA — Christmas is a prayer, a promise and a poem.

Of all the things we can cook up at Christmas time, peace and tranquility are the most important.

When the world and our personal lives are twisting and turning in so many directions, Christmas brings hope.

To some, Christmas means a savior. To others it means the conclusion of another year. The minutes of daylight are slowly now going to increase.

In the wild world around us hibernation and dormancy hushes the Northwoods. The river and the lakes hide under blankets of ice.

We are so blessed to live in Upper Michigan where the spirit of Christmas thrives. People are generous. Folks smile at each other and are ready to lend a helping hand to help everybody get through winter.

After a gentle snowfall, a pristine white wonderland lures us into the sparkling forest.

Life can get very hectic in December. But we can never be too busy to notice the chickadee at the window or too busy to read to a child or just enjoy some peace and quiet.

Christmas is a prayer — a prayer for peace, good health and wellbeing.

Christmas is a promise — a promise of a new year and new dreams.

And Christmas is a poem:

Christmas creeps in on carpets of snow

Descending upon December, cold night glow

Like footsteps muffled by a snowy ground

Christmas comes silently, no sound

Christmas kindles the spark in the child’s eye

Bundled warm and rosy-cheeked beneath the winter’s sky

This season is treasured by young and old

This Christmas season more precious than gold

Spruces, pines and firs stand proud and strong

Towering over gladden people engaged in song

Blazing little stars set the treetops a glow

Sending tranquil feelings, no evil can show

Christmas tames the Northwind’s scratching claw

And applies a sweet love that makes hearts thaw

Like the flame that touched the dry birch bark

Christmas grows to melt the dark

Standing here, I feel the fires heat

Taste the love in so warm and sweet

Christmas is precious, treasured and dear

God bless the man who keeps Christmas in his heart all year!

Merry Christmas, from Karen Wils.

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Karen (Rose) Wils is a lifelong north Escanaba resident. Her folksy columns appear weekly in Lifestyles.