It may surprise some people—especially those who only see my smiling YouTube face—but I’m not naturally a joyful person. I don’t instinctively find silver linings, and discouragement can often come easily. My work is deeply relational, which means there are no tidy metrics or algorithms telling me how I’m doing at life. And like many people, I often feel the tension of trying to live up to the Christmas themes of hope, joy, and peace while wrestling with my own inner fog. Rec