Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Last week I ran into a friend from Mississippi and asked him how he was doing. In true Southern form he replied, “Blessed and encouraged.” I laughed because only in the South would you hear that response.

Surprisingly, “blessed and encouraged” has been running around in my Yankee head ever since. It is such a simple saying, but it is having a profound affect on me—it speaks to me in a way that I find difficult to explain. Maybe it is because as I look back over this past year and set my sights on the coming year, I find myself in the same place as my friend from Mississippi.

My wish for all of you this holiday season and 2010 is that you find yourself in a Mississippi “blessed and encouraged” moment of your own. Whatever you choose to call it, however it dawns on you, whenever it reveals itself—I hope it happens and, in that moment, brings you joy.

Con affetto,

Mark

***In 2010, videos of Nonna in the kitchen are coming to the site and some recipes, too!

-The photo is from a wood panel in the Vatican Museums, Rome.