The Christmas season arching from the Feast of the Nativity to the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord is filled with many comings and goings. There is of course the coming of the Christ Child, the Holy Family’s refugee flight into Egypt, and the homecoming again when the danger was over. The comings and goings at the Abbey are also a part of the Christmas season. We were happy to have our four student monks’ home from St. Meinrad’s and St. Vincent’s for the holidays, namely Brs. Guerric, Paul, Victor, and Macario. They and all the monks at home were heavily involved with the liturgy and activities of the season. A very big job requiring all hands possible is the decorating of the house and church. Again it was done to perfection and much appreciated. I am told that it takes two hours just to light all the vigil lights in the church before Christmas Midnight Mass. We had a grand crowd of people come for the Christmas Midnight Mass which was again broadcast live on the radio by KAAN Radio in Bethany. Stuart Johnson of Bethany has been engineering this radio broadcast for almost thirty years and so knows the ins and outs of the basilica helping him to set up his antenna. Coming to the Abbey for Christmas Eve Mass has become a standing tradition for a great number of families over the years. We always have local young people act as Mass Servers for that liturgy. We were glad that the weather was not a factor keeping people away this year. It’s good to meet and greet our friends in the guest dining room after the Mass before everyone heads off at last to bed. The unusually mild temperatures through the latter part of December and the Christmas Season not only made for easy travelling for our guests and visitors, but it also helped our construction project. Due to the good weather the construction crews on the Guest House were able to make good progress not only on the outside but on the inside as well. The rooms are beginning to take shape along with the conference rooms, lounges, and storage rooms. We look forward to experiencing the geo-thermal system of heating and cooling. At last our deep Missouri clay will have a good and productive purpose! As the Christmas Season comes to an end our student monks have returned to school and our visiting monk, Br. John McKenzie OSB from Norcia, Italy, along with our seminarians have returned to Conception for the spring semester. Six seminary students discerned that they needed to drop out in the fall semester, but we have five new students transferring to the seminary this spring semester so our enrollment is still stable. It is truly a blessing to see our enrollment remain at near our maximum capacity. Our students are also of high quality and are sincerely seeking to know and respond to their vocation. We have much to suggest that 2012 will be a good year, a year of blessings to carry us through those challenges which are also sure to come. All in the Lord’s hands.