Christmas Eve was clear and cold and a near full moon gave Santa good visibility for his deliveries. As daylight approached there was more and more freezing fog and visibility was dropping down to less than 100 yards.

By 10 a.m. Christmas day it was obviously going to be a bright sunny day even though the temperature remained well below freezing.

This meant the freezing fog formed hoarfrost on everything – trees, shrubs, houses. Everything was coated with diamond-like frost crystals, backed by blue sky and a blanket of snow.

What it really meant, of course, was that each of the 40-plus folks who attended the Christmas party had a beautiful drive to Sondreson Hall. We saw a bobcat running through the snow, some saw elk, everyone saw deer. Then, the beautiful day was topped off by a fantastic meal!

Caldwells and Heaphys cooked a turkey, Holycross baked a ham. There was plenty of potatoes and gravy and everyone brought a side dish or dessert.

There was stuffing, yams, green bean casseroles, salads, deviled eggs and more for the main course. And desserts!

Pumpkin pie, key lime pie, white cake, chocolate cake, huckleberry pie, various kinds and cookies.

It is really wonderful how much work our neighbors and friends went to to make this a successful party.

Someone (Mark Heaphy no doubt) plowed the parking lot at Sondreson Hall. Also shoveled a path to woodshed, outhouse and generator shed.

Someone spent hours decorating the hall and setting up the tables complete with Christmas table clothes and napkins, a Christmas tree with lights and a ceiling sparkling with small white lights.

Someone started the fires early on Christmas so that even though it was in the mid-teens outside it was cozy warm by 4 p.m. when dinner was served.

Someone, or several someones, even paid the member rental fee of $75 and someone else is prepared to do it again on New Year’s Eve.

It’s enough to make an atheist doubt their beliefs. What do you think?