I got up from a sick bed the other morning like a man resurrected; there’s nothing like a headache, nausea, and fevered dreams to make you grateful for the silent miracle of health.

My wife, Norma, who nursed me through my brief but intense illness, explained to me later how the body spontaneously responds to a virus with the coordinated effort of every cell — a process so subtle and dramatic it left me in awe of myself! How good to be reminded that we are guided by a mysterious wisdom scientists can only hint at; the biggest miracles are the ones that go on all the time, escaping our attention.

You’d think I’d know more about this magazine than I do about the mysteries of biology, but I’m not so sure. Here it is each month, but what exactly is it? Here you are, but who are you? Here we are, realities merging. How unimaginable yet perfectly natural for this meeting to occur!

Perhaps my not-knowing allows THE SUN to be more of a surprise for all of us. Surely the magazine’s unpredictability is something to value. Yet some things about THE SUN don’t change: its passion for truth; its commitment to good writing; its avoidance of the easy answer, the cure-all, the fashionable lie.

Something else doesn’t change: THE SUN’s celebration of love, which is the ultimate mystery and the plainest fact of our lives. In that spirit, I suggest THE SUN as a Christmas gift this year, for the holiday and the magazine acknowledge the same mystery, each in its unique way.

To order a gift, fill out the form on the facing page and send it back to us. A one-year subscription is $28. For each additional subscription you save money. The second subscription is $22 — a savings of $6. The third subscription is $15 — a savings of $13. You can order additional subscriptions at $15 each.

We’ll send gift cards to everyone for whom you order a subscription so they’ll arrive before Christmas.

My wish for all of us, as we celebrate the Christmas holiday, is that we remember what the celebration is for. Merry Christmas.

— Sy