During the next several hours, many people around the world will pause to reflect on some of life's most important qualities: peace, love, friendship, and family. Stores and businesses, some that are open every other day of the year, will close and as many people as possible will be with loved ones or spending the holiday as they choose. However you choose to spend the holiday, please think about the "workforce footprint" you leave and whether your activities are important enough to necessitate another person to be working and away from his/her loved ones.

The sanctity of this day was epitomized by the many Christmas truces that occurred along the Western Front during World War I in 1914. Fighting on many of the front lines unofficially stopped, and soldiers on both sides mingled and exchanged gifts. While it's hard to imagine something like this happening during one of the world's bloodiest conflicts, it exemplifies the power of a man's heart to outshine his fists.