Merry Christmas

This is the New York Public Library lion in holiday repose, and this, my blogging friends, is my wish for you over the next few days: A cozy chair, a full moon, a favorite story or a brand-new one. Sometimes I think that all the rushing around we do each holiday season is designed to make us grateful for the pure sitting down we have earned for the afterwards. I plan to get reaquainted with a few dear poets—Stanley Kunitz, Mary Oliver, James Wright, Ted Kooser. I'll finish this week's New Yorker (this week it's the piece on the dramatic editing of Raymond Carver that haunts). I'll sneak inside my favorite independent for a few new titles before it closes today at noon, and perhaps I'll read The Legacy of Ashes, just to keep up with my CIA-fascinated son.

I have earned my stories. You have earned your stories.

Peace be with you.