Luminarias on Christmas Eve

My family moved to a small town in New Mexico this year, and in December, our neighbor knocked on the door with a stack of brown paper bags and a bucket of sand. "Luminarias," she said. "Everyone on the street does it. You'll see."

The tradition is simple. You fold down the top of each paper bag, pour a few inches of sand in the bottom and set a candle inside. On Christmas Eve, you line them up along your sidewalk, your driveway and the edge of your roof.

My kids and I set out sixty bags. At dusk, every family on the street came out and lit theirs at the same time. One by one, the candles glowed through the paper, soft and golden, and the whole neighborhood came alive with little lights. They outlined every house, every path and every wall, all the way down the hill.

We walked the whole neighborhood with hot chocolate, along with hundreds of other people, saying "Feliz Navidad" to strangers. My daughter held my hand and said it looked like the stars had come down to visit. I can't imagine a better welcome to a new town.