It is a fair, even-handed, noble adjustment of things, that while there is infection in disease and sorrow, there is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humour.
― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

Our Christmas Miracle?

On our weekly family zoom chat, we talked about our scaled-down holiday celebrations. Since our family includes my nine siblings, their spouses, children, and grandchildren, in pre-Covid days this was a huge affair, with family at multiple tables and our family’s signature separate and overloaded dessert tables.

Of course, back when I was growing up, if you rang our doorbell at any dinner time and you were a cousin, knew a cousin, or correctly guessed the partial name of a cousin, you were brought in, another plate was jammed into the dozen already set up, and you got the first serving of pot roast. Meanwhile, kids were evicted from…