BEST WISHES …

… for Christmas and the New Year.

These messages of good will and their accompanying special gifts are now in their eighth year – the requested entire collection may be found here; new readers should repair thither to pick up on any missed references in what follows.  

The past few years have proved challenging in finding valuable gifts which may be sent in an e-mail; it is not an easy selection.  Offerings must be found which are light in weight, small in size and capable of digital transmission.  They should also, of course, be most welcome to receive as a present.

And there, just there, is the clue to this year’s offering, in black and white (depending on your monitor and optional choices).  This year’s gift is no less than:

The Present.

You may not have noticed it, but you have it, right now as you read this.   The present stretches endlessly around you, for local habitation.  It will, of course, not be available for one moment longer, so please enjoy it immediately.  Having said that, this is nonetheless a present which is not just for Christmas; it surely is the gift which keeps on giving.

For those of you who might complain that I am only giving you something which you already have, my response is that this particular present is so easily misplaced that a reminder must surely be a welcome gift from a friend.

And for those who were hoping for a further sally into punctuation philosophy, having enjoyed the hermeneutics of 2014, 2016 and 2017 (qv), may I regretfully inform you that [.] being used as a point in time, misses the point.  That is the elusive nature of the here and now.

Does this mean that we are back to 2013’s rather singular gift?  Well, not quite; that particular particle helps provide mass, but the present is substantially other.  Indeed, it is easily missed.  But here it is >

Dear Friends, enjoy.  With my respects, best wishes and love,  D