In the mythical republic we have loved and cherished our friends and family all year, so this day is not about them.
This is the day we make a special effort to reach out to those not in our circle. This is the day when we love others as we love ourselves.
The supermarkets are crowded and food is being snatched up, not for our self indulgence, but because we are inviting the people we have ignored into our homes and hearts.
We are not putting on community dinners as pious contrition. Such community dinners maintain their outsider status and treat them as if they are dependents.
No, we have gathered together with them. We have understood the part we have played in their separateness, in their loneliness and destitution.
