Five days 'til Christmas--alone

Abandoned Oklahoma homestead, 10 by 13 watercolor, from a photo

Gloomy day, windy, cold, a time to remember what it's like to be alone, alone as an abandoned homestead rotting away.
There are ghosts, memories, sadnesses, regrets, all awakened when you come across such a ruin, a metaphor for broken lives.
In the midst of winter, a time of death, it is good to think about being alone. It helps you to value being with family, loved ones, friends at Christmas. 
Is that not what Christmas is all about--not being alone any more? For there to be a time of joy and togetherness, there will also be a counterpart, gloom and loneliness.
Yet as we gather, knowing we need each other, don't forget those who are alone, for whom here in Oklahoma and around the world, there is unending gloom, people who are rotting away, abandoned--for whom there is no togetherness. 
Is not what Christmas also is all about--bringing hope to those most in need? Was that not what the original "Christmas" was all about?