This year I was a little behind in writing my Christmas cards, however, I managed to get them out in the nick of time.  I was putting the finishing touches on the envelopes with these festive seals that I had bought and I noticed the last one had the words; "Merry & Bright".  I then looked up both words in the dictionary as I contemplated their true definition.  Merry was defined as; full of cheerfulness or festively joyous.  Bright was; radiating or reflecting light; luminous; shining.  When you put these two words together, the definitions of both are so powerful that it made me continue to think about their meaning, especially as we head closer to a joyous Christmas holiday.  I love the thought that cheerfulness along with luminous can be part of the same conversation.  Ideally during this time of year and especially after the many tragic things that have occurred within our country and across the world over the past year, we can certainly use a large dose of those elements.  For those that have recently lost someone, it may be the toughest holiday yet, however, the days ahead are filled with hope and are lined with that brightness that will finally be able to illuminate the dark period that those people find themselves in.  We can certainly do our part in bringing a festive holiday to those that are less fortunate.  The amount of people in need in all of our communities can be insatiable.  Some of the most needy and deserving people, are the one's that are quiet and say nothing about their circumstances.  We have to keep an open eye along with an open heart, to be able to identify when one of those individuals may be in our path and we can somehow make their day.  The world is in such need of bright lights and a joyful carol, that can sing about the hope and wonder that we can expect with this holiday season.  So remember that if you have a neighbor that goes above and beyond in decorating their home to make things merry and bright for the whole neighborhood from a distance, be thankful that you have such a great reminder in such close proximity.