'The Nutcracker' With An Alaskan Twist

This week, a former Pentagon official told the media, "My personal belief is that there is very compelling evidence that we may not be alone" ... and the world kept on turning. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

Work crews remove debris at the site of a home destroyed by fires in the Coffey Park area of Santa Rosa, Calif., last month. Thousands of homes and other structures were destroyed by wildfires in the area. Jeff Chiu/AP hide caption

A pot of rajma, a bean stew from the north of India, cooks on the stove. It's one of the recipes included in the new cookbook Bollywood Kitchen. Josh Loock/NPR hide caption

Father Herring performs with dancers during Sitka's Nutcracker ballet in Alaska. BJordan hide caption

Far from his down-and-out days on Skid Row, Ben Shirley is currently a student at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Mark Hayes/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

The Dallas Cowboys, led by owner Jerry Jones, center, take a knee prior to the national anthem before an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals in Glendale, Ariz., on Sept. 25. Matt York/AP hide caption

Judge Marilyn Moores, who presides over the juvenile court in Marion County, Ind., says the number of children who are in need of foster care because of the opioid epidemic has more than doubled in the past three years. Matt Sedensky/AP hide caption

Artist Andrew Wyeth — pictured on his property in Chadds Ford, Penn. in 1964 — would have turned 100 in July of 2017. Bill Ingraham/AP hide caption

'Love, Santa' by Martha Brockenbrough. Arthur A. Levine Books hide caption