It's kind of melancholy for a song that many consider to be a Christmas song, isn't it?

What you have in this tune is the true story of two people who re-encounter each other after several years of separation. And as they spend some time re-connecting, they both recognize that despite opening up to each other, it doesn't mean that anything else is going to happen for them. The moment has passed them by, and they're mostly just left with the restlessness and maybe even some self-pity that they hadn't even realized they were experiencing earlier.

They're glad they saw each other, and they still manage to come away sadder about their own situation, having gained and lost a shred of hope that this is the opportunity they've been waiting for.

Fogelberg always insisted that the story was true, but he never revealed the identity of the woman in the story. But shortly after he died in 2007, she came forward and did an interview with a Peoria, Illinois newspaper. Her name is Jill Anderson Greulich, and she says she hears from Fogelberg's fans all the time, with almost invariably positive messages, and especially around the holidays.

It's not really a Christmas song in the sense of Christmas songs we typically think of. It's set during Christmas, but it's not the overly-happy, sanitized Christmas we're used to singing about. It's more like the Christmas that actually happens to us.

And that's not always a bad thing.

I meant what I said about the cookies. If you come up with a guess, hit me up on the social media and I'll let you know if you got it.

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