"And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling. How could it be so?  It came without ribbons.  It came without tags.  It came without packages, boxes or bags.  And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore.  Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before.  What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store.  What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more."

-Dr. Seuss

Perhaps subtleness takes a vacation to make way for sparkles, lights and va-va-voom Christmas displays, but simplicity remains the true sign of a merry heart - a smile and a tune.

If it were possible to quiet the mayhem in a department store on the Saturday before Christmas, then it would also be possible to hear the quiet hums from each shopper, matching the tunes playing through the speakers. One might hear a squeaky Fa-la-la-la-la-la in the perfume aisle or a muffled Jingle Bells in the toy section.

It's a Christmas phenomenon - a sure indication of lightheartedness.

Why shouldn't hearts be light? It's Christmas, after all. That special time of thanks, of giving and getting, of thank yous and your welcomes, of dinners, desserts and diet breakers.

The season where every town feels like a community and cheerful faces are never in short supply.

It's true that traditions vary and sometimes conflict, but at the core of it all is a special peace only brought on by Christmas joy.

We, at the newspaper would like to wish our advertisers, subscribers and readers a very Merry Christmas.

May the bright lights shine from the inside out to warm your heart this season.

We hope you enjoy the time you spend with family, friends, strangers and sweethearts.

Take time to believe in miracles during this season when faith is at it's highest levels and when none have time or room for doubt.

Find meaning in the mayhem and value in the calm.

Forget the things that threaten to take away the smile and the tune, there's an excess of those all through the year.

Be thankful that blessings outnumber the lights on your tree and cookies in your tummy.

Joyeaux Noel from our homes to yours.