Susan

“Do you know who 'twas that first knew our Lord had caused Himself to be born? 'Twas the cock; he saw the star, and so he said–all the beasts could talk Latin in those days; he cried: 'Christus natus est!' "
He crowed these words so like a cock that Kristin fell to laughing heartily. And it did her good to laugh, for all the strange things Brother Edvin had just been saying had laid a burden of awe on her heart.
The monk laughed himself:
"Ay, and when the ox heard that, he began to low: 'Ubi, ubi, ubi.'
"But the goat bleated, and said: 'Betlem, Betlem, Betlem.'
"And the sheep so longed to see Our Lady and her Son that she baa-ed out at once: 'Eamus, eamus!'
"And the new-born calf that lay in the straw, raised itself and stood upon its feet. 'Volo, volo, volo!' it said.”
― Sigrid Undset, Kristin Lavransdatter

“And now that you don't have to be perfect, you can be good.”
― John Steinbeck, East of Eden

“Advent creates people, new people.”
― Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas

“Everyone needs a place where they can go to just ponder for a while. Silence is important; it's the only time you can hear the whispering of truth.”
― Glenn Beck, The Christmas Sweater