I’ve enjoyed the holidays. The food is excellent in our house. We play charades and have a talent show. The presents are the right amount. This time between Christmas and New Year’s Day is quiet. We’re all happy that none of us is on a plane this year. Who can complain about a holiday in which you’re supposed to drag a tree into the house and decorate it? And you get Christmas letters.

Lots of grumpy people complain about Christmas letters. I‘m here to give you another point of view. So what if people brag about their trips, their houses, their successful children and adorable grandchildren? If you can’t brag to your friends and family, who can you brag to?

My favorites are those letters that most reflect their writers. One cousin is literal, going through the year month to month, with their doings in Pennsylvania and on the road. This cousin and her husband stop at every attraction on their travels—historic markers, factory tours, tiny museums. They see everything in detail. They take lots of trips, but are frugal. Once, in a Day’s Inn somewhere in the south, they surreptitiously watched a drug deal take place outside their window. And they wrote about it in their letter. Continue reading →