Some of you know that many years ago I suffered a tragic loss. That loss impacted many people, and certainly continues to impact those who knew Patti - especially her wonderful family.

A couple of times a year, I try to urge you who read this to grab the cell phones of those you love, start their camera, point it at yourself and record for them a video telling them how much you love them. Tell them what they mean to you.

One day, one of you will need to see that video and hear that video over and over again. It's a free gift that will prove priceless to those who receive it from you. It costs you nothing to create this but a few minutes of your time, and everyone has a cell phone capable of doing this.

I've never really been a holiday person. I never know what day it is. I'm smart in some ways and stupid in others, and the awareness of "now" escapes me. Sometimes, I don't even know what season or month it is. Yep, Nicole would tell you it's like that for me.

But I say this to tell you that without really knowing or anticipating, the absence of Patti hits me every year at this time. It's gentle, but persistent. Almost a physical push into my being. I once likened grief to an 80-ton freight train that pushes slowly into your back. It's not aggressive, but you cannot stop it. It's an immovable weight that surges into you. So, you just kind of ride it out.

For a few days around this time, that cloud kind of hangs on me. I become very aware of what time of year is coming. It's just what it is.

God bless Nicole, she knows this and patiently and lovingly urges me to talk it through. She also loves Christmas and the Hallmark Channel and decorating and all of it. Last year, I was okay with a tree, so we had one and will again every year forward.

You don't get over the loss. You just learn to adapt. I came to call it a betterhalfectomy. You're missing a part of you. You adjust. You get on with your life. In my case, I found the most marvelous woman who loves and understands me and I continue my life with her.

I'm also very open about the fact that I miss Patti. Not a day goes that I don't think of her. So, I just ask this of you in the next few days...

While you have family who surround you, grab their phone and record for them a priceless gift. Because you love them so.