Hello Dear Reader,

Tinsel glistens, carols ring, and gifts sit wrapped and ready. Now, the busy of Christmas comes to its crescendo, followed by the quiet dim of a holiday glow.

In this rush and release, I turn again to one of my favorite poems of the season: The Work of Christmas by Howard Thurman. *

Written in 1948, this poem remains as powerful and relevant as when it was penned 76 years ago.

Howard Thurman was a professor, pastor, and civil rights leader. Born in 1899, he founded the first major interracial, interdenominational church in the United States, was the first black dean at a mostly white American university, and served as mentor to scores of students, including Martin Luther King, Jr.

Yet, Howard Thurman remains widely unknown. The activist was not boastful or loud. He believed real change was internal, individual, and often quiet.

“There must be always remaining in every life,” he wrote, “some place for the singing of angels, some place for that which in itself is breathless and beautiful.”

Colleagues and scholars have long praised Thurman’s work and heart.

“He gently and powerfully moved through the world in a spirit of grace, dignity, and humility,” says Walter Fluker, a professor at Boston University, where Thurman served as dean.

With grace, dignity and humility — the spirit of Christmas shines on.

With warm wishes to you in this season of darkness & light.

— Drew

* My other favorite seasonal poem is: When Giving Is All We Have, by Alberto Ríos.