It’s been forty years (gasp!) since I wrote my first annual Christmas letter, The Crosier Chronicle, a yearly recap of my family’s adventures.

The reason I know it’s been forty years since that first Chronicle is that 1982 was the year my son, Stephen, was born and this past November, he celebrated his 40th birthday (double gasp!)

Back then, things were truly insane … in fact, the lead article was titled “Crosiers to celebrate Christmas on Dec. 26th.” In 1982 Carl Crosier conducted the Lutheran Church of Honolulu Choir and members of the Honolulu Symphony in a performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria on Christmas Eve. That year the church’s Advent Procession was broadcast on Hawaii Public Radio; Kathy gave a recital on then-new J.W. Walker tracker organ at St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church; Carl conducted a Christmas concert with the Ensemble Players Guild which included the Charpentier Messe de Minuit, Corelli and Manfredini Christmas concertos, and Carl sang two solos at the Honolulu Symphony Christmas concert, on which Kathy’s setting of Veni Emmanuel was included on the program.

Crazy! Absolutely insane!

I wasn’t kidding about celebrating Christmas on December 26th. That year Christmas Day was on a Saturday, which meant we had a regular Sunday church service the next day. We had our fancy gourmet dinner including boeuf roti (one of Carl’s specialties) on December 26th, St. Stephen’s Day, to which we invited several friends.

Actually that was a typical December schedule for many years … even decades. Interesting that the LCH Choir performed Vivaldi’s Gloria that year, because that same work is what new director and organist, Barry J. Wenger, has chosen for the choir to perform this Christmas Eve.

And at Nuuanu Congregational Church where I am playing the organ for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services, trumpeters Russell Ishida and Thomas Kamisato are playing two trumpet and organ arrangements of … you guessed it, Vivaldi Gloria.

In 1982, I started a new job as handbell choir director at St. Andrew’s Priory School which included nine (count ’em!) different handbell choirs, four 4th-grade choirs, 4 5th-grade choirs, and 1 choir of 7th and 8th graders.

This year, since Christmas Day is on a Sunday, I’ll have a Christmas Day brunch with 7 people, then clean up the kitchen before taking the redeye flight to San Francisco, then to Burbank where I’ll celebrate Boxing Day (Dec. 26th) with my son’s family. I’ll return on New Year’s Eve, in time to play the Sunday service at Nuuanu the next day.

If you haven’t already seen it, here’s my 2022 issue of The Crosier Chronicle.