I said I was finished with champagne cocktails, but then, it turned out, I wasn’t. I did not set out to deceive you but circumstances changed. Once, way back in my college days, my girlfriend asked, “Is it a lie, if I meant it when I said it?” I did not have a good answer. In that case, I was having trouble processing the changes in circumstance that led to that remarkably honest question. She taught me a lot, and if I had been listening that evening, perhaps I’d have had an easier time with those lessons. The thing is, when I said we were finished with bubbly cocktails, I had no idea, I was going to crack a bottle of sparkling wine for my baby brother’s birthday. I knew Grandma was making Chicken & Dumplings, which meant cranberry sauce, so once I realized we weren’t going to finish the bottle, I decided to make the best of this unexpected bounty. So, yeah, I meant it when I said it, but things changed, and I deceived you. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me for this and so many other unintentional trespasses, as we stand and make Northern Lights.