Miracle Christmas
Elaine sighed as she dropped onto a convenient wooden bench. Leaning back, she set her armload of bags and packages down beside her. She smiled tiredly as she looked around at her fellow last minute shoppers rushing between the stores of the mall in search of that perfect present. She worried that perhaps she was getting too old for this sort of thing, but still couldn't resist the pleasant madness. She loved the feelings that came with Christmas, and seeing all of these people out, full of Christmas spirit. Besides, she thought with a grin, I seem to remember making a resolution about this business last year. Obviously very effective.
She watched the masses for a few moments more, preparing herself for the next round of die-hard shopping. Her wandering eyes came to rest as she saw a young woman in her early twenties, leading a small boy gently by the hand. They had no bags or packages, and from the way they were dressed, Elaine thought she had a reasonably good idea why. Their clothes were clean but very worn, clearly not this year's purchase or even last year's. The woman looked wistfully through the glass at the displays in the windows of the stores they walked slowly past. A smile crept onto Elaine's face as she saw them come to their destination: the procession of children waiting to see Santa Claus. The couple stepped in line with the others and began the trek to reach His Jolliness.
Watching them, a wave of memories washed over Elaine until she was completely surrounded by a time long passed.
She was herself a young woman of twenty-four and poor as a church mouse. It was Christmas Eve and there were no presents under the tree. They didn't even have a tree. To put it romantically, all they had was love. To put it practically, it was going to be a hard Christmas.
The previous year had not been so lean, but there had only been the newlywed couple then, and they honestly believe that all they needed was love. Now they had a baby boy and knew that they also needed money for clothes and groceries. Elaine tried to keep her spirits high and usually succeeded by thinking about her little family. But those were the very thoughts that were making this holiday so difficult. There was certainly no money to buy gifts for the ones she loved so dearly.
She looked out the window at the light snow that dusted everything with white. She heard Henry come up behind her and felt herself relax as he placed his strong hand on her shoulder. Leaning forward, he kissed the top of her head and followed her gaze. "Come on, Ellie," he said, "let's take a walk out in it."
"Is it cold outside?" Elaine asked, worrying about the protection their thin clothes would offer.
"It's not too bad," Henry replied. "And we have the coats your sister gave us."
Elaine almost cringed. She loved her sister and the coats were badly needed, but she hated anything that smelled of pity. On reflection, though, she realized the intentions were pure kindness and that removed the thought of insult.
She nodded her assent and rose to her feet. Henry retrieved the garments while Elaine dressed the baby, Robert, in his warmest. She put on the warm wool coat that Henry offered her and held her child close to her as they went out into the frosty world.
They walked slowly for a while in silence, close together, each thinking their own set of thoughts, but both heads filled with hopes and worries, memories and expectations. They pressed closer to the edge of the road when occasional vehicles passed by. One particularly large truck sped by and they watched curiously as something fell off the back onto the pavement. The driver did not slow down or stop to retrieve it, and the family went to see what it was. To their surprise, it was a tree. Henry stood it up on its freshly cut trunk and they admired the beautiful fir.
Henry looked in the direction the truck had gone. Elaine gazed upward and whispered, "Like it fell from heaven . . . "
Without a word, Henry scooped up the tree, lofted it under one arm, and they turned and headed back down the road.
Arriving at their home, Henry leaned the tree against the gatepost and went to search for a bucket and some rocks to hold it upright. Elaine headed inside to put Robert down for a nap and found an envelope wedged in the frame of the front door. She took it in with her and when the baby began to sleep, she slit the seal open with her finger. Inside was a small wad of cash. She pulled out the bills in astonishment and found a quickly scrawled note. It said:
E.--
Sorry I missed you . . . I heard you were in a bit of a spot and wanted to do what I could to help.
S.
Elaine took a step backward in disbelief as she looked at the money in her hand. She turned and ran outside, frantically calling for Henry. He came running and stopped short when he saw what she was holding. She handed the note to him. As he read it, a perplexed look settled on his face. "Who?" he asked.
Elaine shrugged helplessly. "I don't know . . . I can't think of anyone I know whose name begins with "S." Certainly not any of my friends . . . or family . . . " She shook her head.
Henry reread the paper and looked back at her. "Well," he said at last, "whoever they are, I think we should praise our God for them and their kindness."
They knelt and offered a prayer of thankfulness to God. Rising from their knees, they counted the money and mentally calculated their bills for the month. And then they smiled.
When Robert woke, they got in their old rusting truck and drove into town. Most shops had already closed, but the one that they wanted was still sending its rays of yellow light into the quickly descending darkness. They parked and entered the warmth of the building, Elaine holding Robert to her with one arm, the other through Henry's. Just like when we were kids at a dance, she thought.
They walked down the appropriate aisle and looked at it. . . . The Turntable. Not just any turntable, either. They had admired this one for months, a good quality model that was not too expensive. It was their goal to save enough to purchase that player. And now they could. A couple of Christmas orchestrations were also chosen, and as they were about to take them to the counter, Elaine said, "Wait." She directed her husband to the toy area and held up a soft stuffed bear. "Wouldn't it be lovely for Robert?" she suggested hopefully.
Henry smiled and nodded. "Lovely." When they got home, they danced the evening away to the music which might as well have been sung just for them by the angels themselves. Around the small living room they stepped and twirled, all three of them, and later, just the two lovers.
As Elaine remembered it, nearly forty years later, it again brought tears to her eyes. Now Robert was a grown man, long since married, with kids of his own, but he treasured the teddy bear still. He'd grown up with it and the wonderful story of "The Miracle Christmas." They had never figured out who the mysterious "S." was, but never would forget that unknown benefactor, either.
Elaine thought for a moment and selected a brightly wrapped box out of one of her bags. She had bought a stuffed bear for her granddaughter but knew it would suit her newfound purpose just perfectly. She hurried over to where the young mother and her child were walking away from Santa Claus. Catching up with them, she handed the present to the startled woman and said, "I want you to have this, honey. It's for your boy."
The girl looked down at the wrapping and back to Elaine in surprise. "Why?"
"Just passing on a memory, my dear."
Author's Note: This story is based on a true one, as much as I could manage with the limited amount of information given to me. The names are made up but one "lucky" family did have a miracle Christmas (some, including myself, would be inclined to call it a "God-thing").