Step by tiny step, Christmas has crept even into Motovun. Dreadful as they always are, street decorations silently appeared a few days ago. An occasional carol can be heard from an open window. Holiday trappings of all sorts have sprung up on some front doors. But things are starting to get ever more serious on the personal level. They are getting ever closer to the skin. How to react to a stray card with all the best wishes? Whether or not to respond in kind to an unsuspected present? What to say if you are surprised with an invitation to the upcoming family feast? Luckily, it will be over very soon. Sometime tomorrow afternoon all the good people and their kin will retreat to their houses and gather around tables laden with delicacies of all kinds. All they will expect the next day, the serene holiday itself, will be a few fervent words of greeting: “Merry Christmas!” And it will be all over. Phew!