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By Jack Dionne

The Christmaa secaon ig qlmost upon ua. You cqa leel it in the qir. lt is cll about ug. It will probcbly be c Arecler Christmos oI th<rnksgiving thcn cny previous onei we hcve go very much to be thanHul lor -the terrible, hecrrt-searing wcr is over,

A mighty prcyer oI reliel riaes lrom this whole nction bec<ruEe our millions oI boye in unilorm qre either home, or coming home.

There is s prayer ol intense sympcthy lor the loved ones ol those who will not relurnt wbo died thct Right might live. They shall never be lorgotten. "Greater love hoth no mqn thqn ihis," rcrid the Ccrpenter'who gcve ua Chrighncr, thqn that c mqn shcll lcy down hig lile in the ccuge ol humcnity.

Some wiee mcn hqs soid that Christmcrs is the time lor giving ond lor getting; lorgiving cnd lorgetting.

Soure wca recently rerncrLed thct he considered Thcnlrsgiviag the linest ol cll thc holidcyr. At Christmss, he scid, you give cwcy everything you own; qt New Yecr's you male regolutiona only lo gee bow quiclly you cqn breck lhem; on the Fourth oI luly you spend your time dodging lireworks; but on Thcnkggiving oll you hcve to do ig eqt and be thanklul. He wag joking, ol courge.

For Chridtrnog is the time lor spiritucl rtock-taking. It is the time lor hculing out the Golden Rule, polisbing it up cnd putting it ia good worHng order, cnd then putting it lo work in our dcily livea Six hundred yecrs belore Jegus Christ wos born, the Cbincae leqcher, Conlucius, sicled ihe Golden Rule in THIS woy: "You should not do lo oihers whct you would not wcut olhers to do to you." Old Socrcteg hcd anoiher wcy of putting it. He sqid: "Act towqrd others ce you hcve others cct toward you." Aristotle gcid: "Wc should conduct ourselveg towqrdg others qs we would havE therr conducl lherngelveg towqrd us." Senecs acid: lDo not to your neighbor, whct you would not hcve your neighbor do to you." Pericler, cnoiber Pogon, who hcd power oI lile cnd decrth over millions ol men lor mcny yeors, scid: "I hove never willingly cquaed cny humon lo wecr crepe."

Then cqme the Man oI Gclilee, precching llis philososophy ol Lindness, meelness, work, service, cnd honor. The only time He used lhe words-"I shqll give you qn extrmple,"-wcs whcn he wcg doing the work oI c servcnt.

"Hecven helps those who help themgelves," scys the old cdcAe.

"Heqven helps those who help eqch other," ie the spirit oI Christmcs.

And qbove <rll cnd beyond qll thig Christmas, lend q hqnd lo c returned serice man. Wheiher or aot we qre lit to continue qa cr grect Christicn ndtion depende on how we trect the men who lsced de<rth snd destruction lor us,

The lowest sin oI which humcrnity cqn be guilty, is ingrctitude. And ingrctitude towcrrd our own exeervice boys would be q crime unspeckcble; "too loul lor hecrven ond unfit lor hell."

Let us mcke it o delinite cnd specilic Christmqg cctivity this yetrr-our first order ol buainess-to lend a hond to men who wecr lhqt grcnd liitle buttonhole btrdge ol service. li-will sweeten the dcy immeasurcbly.