December 2020 Issue

To Keep Christmas Well

“…and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well …” It is among the closing lines from Charles Dickens’ classic story, “A Christmas Carol.” It may be one of the best remembered and most cherished sentences in the book. “To keep Christmas well,” I suspect, implies different things to each of us. But in the language of the day when this book was written, it meant to observe, or to honor, or to celebrate something. To actively remember. Perhaps in this year of rather lopsided “celebrations” — with their often double-edged experiences and wobbly sense of imbalance — I have found myself searching for

5 Reasons to Use Hemp Oil Supplements for Wellness

Every day, more people are using hemp oil supplements to promote wellness of the mind and body, and it’s easy to see why. The natural phytocannabinoids found in them boost the endocannabinoid system (ECS), which is key to maintaining health and wellness. Below are just a few reasons celebrities and professional athletes advocate for this plant-based product, and you should consider including them in your daily routine as well. 1. Relaxation and Focus Everyone has a list of daily responsibilities that may feel overwhelming and add strain to the body, even if you don’t notice it. Many individuals rely on hemp oil supplements as a way to relax without providing

How much do you know about employee benefits?

It is the time of year when employees make their benefit selections. Many of them do not know what they are selecting, but next year thousands of dollars will be deducted from their paychecks to pay for benefits they know very little about. Many employees select the lowest premium plan without realizing that it does not cover the spouse’s prescription medications or the child’s therapy. A friend of mine recently came to me for assistance in selecting her family’s benefit plans for next year. She was handed an enrollment form to make her selections and no other information. When I started asking her questions, she could not answer them. There

Story of Hanukkah

Hanukkah is the Jewish Festival of Lights, celebrated to commemorate the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem after Judah Maccabee’s victory over the occupying Greek army in 165 BC. In the land of Judah, ruling Syrian King Antiochus ordered the Jewish population to reject all their religious beliefs and practices and worship Greek gods. For fear of the occupying Greek military that enforced King Antiochus’ decree, some Jews obeyed that command, but the majority chose to rebel against it. Thus were sown the seeds of what would ultimately become the celebration of Hanukkah. Fights broke out in a village near Jerusalem when Greek soldiers demanded that the Jewish villagers