Last weekend we were delighted to be at a party that included a sing-a-long. Without having to be bundled up or cold, we joined in with twenty other hearty voices, belting out all the favorites. Everywhere around us were scenes of tomtens, Santas, elves, reindeer and children. The tree was heavy with hand made ornaments, some from Germany, others from Iceland and Scandinavia. Every conceivable confection and cheese was there to tempt us, and we all succumbed. It was perfect. 

One of the tunes was a warning to little kids to behave lest Santa omit you from his very exacting list.  Any infraction could oust you. You know the words. 

"Be good for goodness' sake!"

The pianist paused to draw our attention to this suggestion. Being good not for rewards, or reputation or even a remote control car. Rather because goodness is reason enough. 

The notion stuck with me. In fact I held my tongue when I wanted to complain about the state of the living room. It echoed in my head when I composed a perfectly timed criticism for an unsuspecting family member. The notion nudged me to express my appreciation to the man at the post office, whom I knew had been swamped. 

"How many days have you had off lately?"

"One since Thanksgiving. Last week alone I clocked a hundred hours."

I thanked him profusely, and tried to offer my respect for a difficult job.

Be good for goodness' sake. A tall order. But singing about it with a bunch of friends made it a teensy bit easier.  As did the cheese.