Stan Lockhart, Principal at the Lockhart Group

Christmas 2014 was supposed to be a special time for the Lockhart family. It was the last Christmas of my wife Becky's service in the Utah Legislature. After 16 years and four years as Speaker of the House, our family would get our wife and mom back. 2015 promised new focus and direction.

Late November, Becky began having dizzy spells. Just a wintertime virus. In the middle of December, she attended a national Legislative forum in New York City. One night after walking through Times Square with colleagues and holding on to a friend's arm, they arrived back at the hotel and Becky said to the friend, "Where is the elevator?" when they were in front of the elevators. "Where is my room?" And suddenly her colleagues knew something was wrong. I got a call at 4 am. "There is something wrong with Becky. We are sending her home. Pick her up at the airport."

We began seeing specialists; a balance test here and a MRI there. Both checking out fine even though Becky was losing cognitive abilities and motor skills a bit day by day. We got an appointment to see a neurologist for early January.

Christmas came and went with Becky doing a bit less each day. We had a skype session with my son Steve who was serving a two year Church mission. Becky wasn't as into the conversation as usual, but would occasionally comment with something insightful. My son could see that his mother wasn't feeling well. Instead of Christmas joy, it was a season of worry for us.

I walked Becky to the car for the doctor's appointment. That was the last time she walked. He ran simple tests similar to what police check for with drunk drivers. Touch your nose. Touch my finger. Here are three words to remember. After some chit chat repeat the three words. Becky struggled. The doctor wanted more tests.

Becky was admitted to the University of Utah Neuro-Acute Center, one of the top 15 neurology units in the country. They ran the same tests as before. Then they hooked her up to an EEG. The machine went crazy. We now knew it was serious. The next morning the medical team came in to tell us that it was likely CJD. Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. No treatment. Always fatal. Alzheimers on steroids. This was a classic case and Becky had no more than a few days to live. I was stunned and numb.

A few days later Becky died at age 46. Less than 60 days from first symptoms to death. The waves of grief came hard and fast. My heart was broken over and over again. It is by far the most painful experience of my life.

Yet through it all, Christmas became more meaningful. After losing Becky, I turned to Jesus and He was there for me; His love, His empathy and His grace. I felt it all. I love Him and am eternally grateful for His Atonement and Resurrection and the promise of Eternal Life with my family. And it all began with His birth in the most humble circumstances, in a manger in Bethlehem.

Rep. Gay Lynn Bennion, House District 41

Christmas has a different flavor for active-duty military families. During the 26-years my husband Jim served in the Air Force, it often meant mailing packages to family back home in Utah or helping our kids settle in for a long plane ride to visit family here. Two Christmases stand out for us.

The hard one was 2001 when Jim was deployed to the United Arab Emirates for about six months. While we loved our neighbors in Ohio, our four children and I missed Jim very much, and also missed our extended family. For the first month of his absence, he was in a black ops area. We didn’t know his exact location and contact of any kind with him was not permitted. Later, we could only connect with him through emails once a week. As war wages in Ukraine and in the middle-east, our hearts are with people who have lost members of their family to the violence or are struggling to survive and anxious about their loved ones.

One of the happiest was our first with a baby, when we rented an apartment in Wheaton, Maryland while Jim was in medical school. What was magical about that time was the strong sense of community we had with our neighbors. Our neighbors were of all ages and many nationalities and religions, but we were all friends. We knew almost everyone in our building, and we felt a connection with each of them. Some of them came to visit with us, or shared their excellent Korean food. One of our senior neighbors dressed up as Santa for our baby son. Though many of us knew our time in there was only for a few years, we gave of ourselves freely and joyfully.

Studies show loneliness is currently an epidemic in our country. Enjoy connecting with others this Christmas as you write cards to friends near and far and as you open your heart to give and connect with love. Create peace and joy, here and now.

Kari Malkovich, Woodland Hills City Council Member

Growing up on the shores of Lake Coeur d’ Alene in Northern Idaho was magical at Christmas time. We would search, year-round, on our 100 acres for the perfect Christmas tree and then cut it the week before Christmas. We would race down the mountain on “saucers” trying not to hit the hundreds of pine trees standing in our way. We would scrape snow and then ice-skate on uneven, but solid, ice in the same location we swam at in the summer. And we would enjoy traditional Norwegian cookies baked especially for us by our grandmother.

I wanted the same experience for my children. The drive north to Coeur d’Alene is about 800 miles from our home in Utah. It would be worth it to have the old-fashioned Christmas of my youth. The Suburban was packed with kids, toys, snacks, Christmas decorations, food, and presents. As they say, “over the river and through the woods”….we also had to go over 5 mountain passes, through blizzard conditions, and most importantly, keep everyone from fighting. Hours were added to the normal drive-time under those conditions. My enthusiasm was waning.

But when we arrived, I saw my trees, my lake, my mountain, and I knew I was home. We started a fire, warmed the house, made hot cocoa, and began our memorable Christmas week. The next morning, we trudged through the deep snow looking for our special tree. It’s hard to gauge the true size of a tree when it’s growing alongside its 200-foot-tall neighbors. Do you remember when Clark found his perfect tree in Christmas Vacation? That’s how our kids responded when they saw “the One”.

We told them it was too big, but they insisted. We cut it and hauled it down to the house. I still don’t know how we got it inside, but most of the furniture in the living room had to be removed to accommodate our new best friend. It smelled amazing and brought joy to our hearts. It was our tree! That was the beginning of a magical week for my kids. Although it was only a taste of what I had experienced my whole life, it was enough to take them away from commercialism, the internet, and other outside distractions. It was time standing still, that transformed family, fun, and that One special tree.

Holly Richardson, Editor of Utah Policy

One year, a number of years ago, my husband and I were up late on Christmas Eve wrapping gifts and putting them in kid piles when I gasped. We had forgotten a child. Not go-to-Paris-and-leave-a-child-home-alone forgot, but we forgot to shop for one of the middle children.

That was also the year I started using a spreadsheet. (And now I know why Santa checks his list twice!)

Before the spreadsheet, it was more like fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants-and-hope-it-all-works-out. That particular year, I remember grabbing things at various times as I did normal shopping. That child would think that’s funny, this one is into dolls, that one outgrew his shoes — again. I did not have a system for tracking, however, as I found out Christmas Eve. Luckily, we had some extra gifts we had purchased “just in case,” and we always had plenty of candy and snacks, so it all worked out, but that was a heart-stopping moment I did not care to repeat.

As our family grew to 25 children (20 at home at our peak), the gift-giving became more complex, as you might imagine. We have tried a variety of things when it comes to gifts. At the beginning, I’d classify our gift-giving as random and largely utilitarian. Then we tried Dollar Store gifts, then making gifts, then finally settled on giving four gifts: one each for mind, body, spirit and fun.

Here’s what I’ve learned: you can create joyful moments that turn into joyful memories without killing yourself. They don’t have to take a lot of money or even a lot of time. They do take presence, so I try to put away the phone and the to-do list and be there. We often add something new each year, recipes, for example, but we also don’t do everything every year. For example, I have not sewn matching pajama pants for about four years. It was an annual tradition I have given up. I try to be intentional. Be still. Be there. (Even if I still check the spreadsheet after the kids and grandkids have gone to bed.)

Scott Howell, former Utah Senate Minority Leader

I was delighted to visit The White House during the holiday season. Two talented individuals, Farah and Bryan Sanders from Heber, Utah, beautifully decorated the Christmas tree.

Their display, encompassing symbols from various celebrations, conveys a universal message: we're more alike than different, progress stems from collaboration, and unity transcends divisions. The bright lights in our neighborhoods symbolize forgiveness, unity, and rejecting darkness.

As we celebrate, let's remember that despite differences, love and common interests should prevail. Through caring cooperation, we can advance collectively and spread joy beyond the season.

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On This Day In History

Quote of the Day

“I never thought it was such a bad little tree. It’s not bad at all, really. Maybe, it just needs a little love.”

— A Charlie Brown Christmas

On the Punny Side

What is Santa’s favorite pizza?

One that’s deep-pan, crisp and even!

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