Make midweek holiday one of most memorable

Going home for Christmas this year? Are members of your family coming home? If so, you may one of the lucky ones, especially if you live far from your loved ones.

With the unhappy arrangement of the 2002 calendar, many of us could be spending the holiday alone in our homes. With both Christmas and New Years on a Wednesday, it will be difficult to arrange extended days off -- at least more difficult than when the holidays fall nearer the weekend.

For those involved in retail, work won't end until late Christmas Eve, and, even if they do have the holiday itself off, they will have to report back to the job bright and early Thursday to handle returns.

But that doesn't mean we have to have a lonely Christmas. How many times have you skipped Christmas eve church services because of travel? How many times has Christmas Mass befallen the same fate?

Southwest Nebraska and Northwest Kansas have few soup kitchens for homeless, but is there some other way to serve our fellow man during this season of giving? Is there someone else in our "solo" condition who we can invite over to enjoy the holiday? Can we offer to share a holiday meal?

Let's look for ways to make this midweek holiday special. Who knows, maybe by going out of our way to give, we will receive the best gift of all.