With Christmas season fully upon us, I have finally taken up the task of purchasing a few gifts for some of the people in my life. Molly and I don’t make a big production of the holiday, but I do enjoy the lights and the nature of the season. I believe the giving tradition to be a wholesome one, but I try to avoid becoming turned off by the purely consumer commercial aspect. On the other hand, in terms of economics, I realize how much of a boost the holidays are in carrying the economy through the doldrums of January and February.

I had the opportunity to ski at Telluride on Saturday. With Molly working there part time, it makes the endeavor much more friendly. Especially with the VIP pass courtesy of the World Cup event. Thanks Marshall. The snowboard races were a thrill to watch, with racers flying through the air on their way toward the finish line.

The mountain has changed so much since my childhood, when the family would make the occasional ski trip there. Mostly, I don’t recognize a thing. Some places just don’t change much though, like the view from the top of See Forever. Memories of being there with family come trickling back. After over a year since Dad’s passing, the healing has settled. The good memories are finding their comfortable places, and those of the tough times fall into submission. It’s so hard this time of year, when we lose many of our loved ones. For all of you who are experiencing that, and those for whom the time is drawing near, my heart goes out to you. I really miss Dad.

I seldom write a column, but from time to time it’s important to take stock of where we are. One might think that with all to news reading I do, I would have something worthwhile to say. Garrison Keillor said that you don’t really know what you believe until you put it in writing. I think that’s true. Simple ideas morph into complexity. And so much of world, state and national news is troubling.

I suppose I have been reticent to reveal my views, worrying about losing favor with advertisers, or being judged as some sort of crackpot. Writing has never been an easy process for me. Like many in the business community, I know the difficulty of going into payroll with meager funds. I’m not a journalist in any way; I don’t cover the beats or write the news. I don’t attempt to affect the news content in this paper. And I have no academic background in journalism. We have the luxury of being able to keep separate our advertising and editorial departments, and have a very professional editorial staff. My most sincere thanks go to every single member of our crew.

To all of the advertisers who make our existence possible, we thank you. The pages of news content are directly funded by advertising content. The number of pages in any week’s edition is determined by the number of inches of advertising that are purchased. In taking stock of the way things are, the businesses appearing on these pages throughout the year deserve all of our appreciation, for keeping a local and independent source of news going in Moab. And for their contribution, they gain the advantage of advertising exposure in more than 3,000 copies, which go to readers who care enough to subscribe, or pay six bits for a copy. The readers of The Times-Independent truly care about our community. We thank you all.

Please accept my personal wish for the best for you and yours this fine holiday season. Merry Christmas!