This week, as I put out my grandmother’s old Nativity Scene and made cookies from a classic family recipe, I’ve been kind of nostalgic, in a good way . . . not lamenting that the past is gone or hating the present, just remembering the past with fondness and gratitude.

Some of my favorite memories are of Christmas. My Dad used to tell us the Christmas story as he set up the Nativity Scene, bringing in all the figures as they entered the plot. He would start with Mary and Joseph going around to the inn and do voices. (“No! There’s no room here!!!”)

It was one of the highlights of my year, as was decorating the tree.

Much later on, I remember my nephew at age two running around crying, “Ho Ho’s coming!” (That’s what he called Santa.)

Christmas memories are the memories that build us. I have a lot of good ones, and today, I’m grateful for that.