CHRISTMAS WISH
by Virginia Dare
Sarah looked out the window as the sun was setting behind the mountains. She turned back to see the children sitting close to the fire, working on paper decorations for the Christmas tree. The sad little tree sat in a bucket and even the strings of popcorn did little to cheer it up. With Luke gone these last two weeks, it was the best she and the children could do. Of course, they wanted a magnificent pine tree but Sarah knew the three of them could never manage it. So, the little tree was chosen and cut down. The top of the tree held the star that had been in her family for generations. It wasn’t straight, the weight of it was more than the little tree could handle.
Luke should have been home by now. Two weeks working in the mines seventy miles away would take its toll on him. He wasn’t well as it was but there was no choice. The crops had failed again. This land was hard and unforgiving. An early, unexpected frost took most of the vegetables and what was left had been canned and would feed them through the winter.
Christmas dinner would be wonderful though. Dr. Simon had come by this morning with a turkey. Said he had been invited to a friend’s house and couldn’t use it. Sarah knew he was just being kind and thanked him, pretending to accept his story. He knew how proud Luke was and didn’t want them to think it was charity. But Sarah knew and it hurt her heart that things were so rough this year. Presents for the children would be a dress she made for Lindy and a warm hat she knitted for Luke Jr.
Sarah once again looked out the window as the hills fell into darkness. She worried about her husband. Was there an accident? Was he safe somewhere? She prayed again that he was well and warm not…no she couldn’t bear to even think it.
After supper, Sarah sat by the fire and read the Christmas story to the children. It was something Luke had always done. Lindy was just four but Luke Jr at eleven knew something was wrong. As he hugged his mother he whispered “It will be okay, Mama. Papa will get here.”
Sarah nodded and kissed her oldest child. There had been two other babies between Luke and Lindy. The boy Roddy had been a daredevil from birth. He fell trying to climb a huge tree and was killed. He’d almost made it to the top. He was eight. The girl Rebecca went to sleep one night when she was three months old and never woke up. She missed them both but thanked God for the two she had.
It was bitterly cold, and the small cabin was drafty. Sarah sat by the fire, keeping it going, waiting for Luke. Eventually she dozed off and dreamed he was there gently waking her. But no, it wasn’t a dream, he was there. He laughed as she jumped up out of the rocker and into his arms.
“Oh, my Sarah, I thought I might not get here. It’s beastly out there. The snow is falling harder by the minute, but here I am. Come help me bring in the gifts I’ve brought.”
She pulled her shawl around her and followed him to the old truck. There was a bicycle for Luke and a cradle for Lindy’s dolls. “How?” was all she could say.
Luke smiled “The family I stayed with gave them to me. I tried to say no, I told them I don’t take charity, and do you know what the wife said? She told me I was being selfish. Yeah, selfish.”
They took the items into the house. “She said that I was keeping them from being happy and that it was a privilege to be able to help another family. She said it wasn’t very long ago that her family had been close to starving when a man helped them. She too had trouble accepting charity, but the man explained that if she refused than he had failed to fulfill a promise he’d made. She accepted and promised one day to do the same. So, there I was, I had to accept and I promised we would one day help another family. Oh, Sarah, I can’t tell you how happy I’ve been since and even the difficult journey home didn’t change it. Someday, we will pass this on but for now, I’m just thankful to be home, to be with you and our children.”
Sarah pulled his face close to hers and kissed him. “You are the best gift I could ever have asked for.”
A few years later, they were able to pass on the kindness to a young family struggling through their first winter in the mountains. Over the years, they helped other families as well. The children helped deliver the tree and gifts to those families, late at night and no one ever knew who the gifts had come from. It became a family Christmas tradition that continues to this day.
Luke should have been home by now. Two weeks working in the mines seventy miles away would take its toll on him. He wasn’t well as it was but there was no choice. The crops had failed again. This land was hard and unforgiving. An early, unexpected frost took most of the vegetables and what was left had been canned and would feed them through the winter.
Christmas dinner would be wonderful though. Dr. Simon had come by this morning with a turkey. Said he had been invited to a friend’s house and couldn’t use it. Sarah knew he was just being kind and thanked him, pretending to accept his story. He knew how proud Luke was and didn’t want them to think it was charity. But Sarah knew and it hurt her heart that things were so rough this year. Presents for the children would be a dress she made for Lindy and a warm hat she knitted for Luke Jr.
Sarah once again looked out the window as the hills fell into darkness. She worried about her husband. Was there an accident? Was he safe somewhere? She prayed again that he was well and warm not…no she couldn’t bear to even think it.
After supper, Sarah sat by the fire and read the Christmas story to the children. It was something Luke had always done. Lindy was just four but Luke Jr at eleven knew something was wrong. As he hugged his mother he whispered “It will be okay, Mama. Papa will get here.”
Sarah nodded and kissed her oldest child. There had been two other babies between Luke and Lindy. The boy Roddy had been a daredevil from birth. He fell trying to climb a huge tree and was killed. He’d almost made it to the top. He was eight. The girl Rebecca went to sleep one night when she was three months old and never woke up. She missed them both but thanked God for the two she had.
It was bitterly cold, and the small cabin was drafty. Sarah sat by the fire, keeping it going, waiting for Luke. Eventually she dozed off and dreamed he was there gently waking her. But no, it wasn’t a dream, he was there. He laughed as she jumped up out of the rocker and into his arms.
“Oh, my Sarah, I thought I might not get here. It’s beastly out there. The snow is falling harder by the minute, but here I am. Come help me bring in the gifts I’ve brought.”
She pulled her shawl around her and followed him to the old truck. There was a bicycle for Luke and a cradle for Lindy’s dolls. “How?” was all she could say.
Luke smiled “The family I stayed with gave them to me. I tried to say no, I told them I don’t take charity, and do you know what the wife said? She told me I was being selfish. Yeah, selfish.”
They took the items into the house. “She said that I was keeping them from being happy and that it was a privilege to be able to help another family. She said it wasn’t very long ago that her family had been close to starving when a man helped them. She too had trouble accepting charity, but the man explained that if she refused than he had failed to fulfill a promise he’d made. She accepted and promised one day to do the same. So, there I was, I had to accept and I promised we would one day help another family. Oh, Sarah, I can’t tell you how happy I’ve been since and even the difficult journey home didn’t change it. Someday, we will pass this on but for now, I’m just thankful to be home, to be with you and our children.”
Sarah pulled his face close to hers and kissed him. “You are the best gift I could ever have asked for.”
A few years later, they were able to pass on the kindness to a young family struggling through their first winter in the mountains. Over the years, they helped other families as well. The children helped deliver the tree and gifts to those families, late at night and no one ever knew who the gifts had come from. It became a family Christmas tradition that continues to this day.