My Christmas is going to be very special. I just moved into a new apartment, in an old building that sits just beside one of the town churches. On the stairs that lead to my place, there is a little, wooden door you wouldn’t even notice unless you knew it’s there, as it has been painted the same color as the walls.

Well, if you open that little door, you’ll find a flower-shaped window that overlooks the basilica: it’s amazingly beautiful and it gives me an enormous sense of peace, this being able to look into the eye of art, beauty and spirituality in such a private manner. It is a moment of touching intimacy and, in many a way, of awe.