For the week of December 19 - 25, 2001

Bittersweet season

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The season of light and giving is clouded by the smoking wreckage of the World Trade Towers, the tears of family members who lost loved ones, and the knowledge that young Americans have traveled far from home to go to war against terror. It is a fretful season, with economic uncertainty and a sense of domestic risk our constant companions.

The majority of Americans alive today have never gone through such a time. We have never experienced a time of national mourning, fury and resolution in the middle of what is supposed to be a joyous holiday.

Anyone should be excused for feeling like time is out of joint and the season bittersweet.

Yet, the season may be just what is needed — if we pay attention to all it symbolizes. The season is the cure for what ails us.

It is a season of contemplation and renewal in the midst of winter’s monochrome landscapes. It renews the knowledge that with light, we can illuminate darkness. With hope, we can dispel desolation. With joy, we can replace sadness.

All of us at the Idaho Mountain Express wish our readers, their families and friends, a season of sharing what is really important in life — the close connections between and among people that may one day bring peace to the world.

Happy Holidays.

 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.