Two weeks ago, I shared a plea from families asking for help. Christmas can be a visible reminder of who receives generously and who gets little or nothing! Christmas was never meant to be that way. Last week we shared a few ideas on how to keep Christ in Christmas. Several churches began a “Christmas Child” fund which enabled them to help many of our families in need. One of our readers from Canada sent a story to help us all appreciate the true meaning of Christ in Christmas. The following paragraphs are from Joanne in Canada.
Almost nineteen years ago I loaded up an old car with two children, two cats, a dog and all our possessions packed tightly into an 8×10 U-Haul along with whatever could be stuffed into the covered roof rack and the interior of the already crowded car. Both children were babies in car seats. In the middle of the night, in the midst of a terrible blizzard we left my home city and my immediate family because of a bad marriage and an abusive husband.
The blizzard continued throughout the night and next day, spanning our home province of Manitoba and the neighboring province of Saskatchewan. Feverishly I pushed on with very few stops and no sleep, driving endlessly through the whirling, blinding snow. By the time we crossed throughAlbertaand landed inBritish Columbia, thirty-eight hours elapsed and exhausted as I was, I still kept going. We literally ran out of gas inMission,British Columbiaa town with a rough reputation and the crime rate of a large city yet they took us in andMissionbecame our home for seventeen years.
By the time Christmas arrived, the children and I were coming out of a transition house with only a rented run-down trailer to go home to. I purchased an artificial Christmas tree for a precious $10 but cried night after night as the Christmas season descended upon us. The children looked with hungry eyes at all the wonder of the shopping malls and many gifts. I remember sitting with a heavy heart while they wrote their letter to Santa looking at the crayon marks and the backward letters lined up in misspelled words. My oldest (3yr old) wanted to put the letter in the mailbox himself and so I lifted him high with the precious letter and let him drop it in the box. As we walked home from posting the letter, they kept asking when Santa would send a reply or would he just bring the gifts on the joyous much anticipated morning. At this point my heart was breaking and I could think of no answer.
On Christmas Eve there was a knock at the door. I nervously opened it a crack and saw four big rough looking men but each of them was carrying a huge box filled with food and gifts. My oldest son looked up at the biggest man who was sporting a beard and asked: “Are you Santa?”
In a deep gruff voice, the man answered “No but he sent us – his best Elves – to deliver this to your baby brother and you. Santa’s only request is that you give thanks for this tonight and every night when you say your prayers. Can you do that?”
As I type this email I still get tears in my eyes. The joy and wonderment of that moment will never be forgotten. Someone, somewhere opened that letter and the Salvation Army stepped in along with volunteers from the Rehabilitation Center for Men. I was a single mother with two babies with no job, no home, and I was running out hope. Yet that Christmas will live on in my heart forever.
For many years after that, we would go and select two angels off the “Angel of Hope” Christmas Tree. We would spend hours selecting just the perfect gift. My boys are now men but they still go to pluck an angel from the tree. I also go because I know there are children who may not have a great Christmas and there is also a mother faced with the tears and fears of the day and season.
Many years have passed and we have since moved from the small town that extended their arms to us. My boys are young men now but they carry the memories. The kindness and love shown by the unknown people who made our Most Wonderful Christmas will never be forgotten and my love to “Santa’s Elves” whose quick smile and twinkling eyes brought it altogether for my family that day.
May God’s peace and love be there for all but hopefully it won’t stop there! Carry God’s love with you always and let your light shine bright. Joanne
Next week: The Conclusion to, “…And the Real Reason for the Season Is…?”
1 Comment
Brian Masinick · December 14, 2011 at 4:09 am
That is a great story, filled with hope and promise. My prayer is that many people will be filled with the hope that Joanne has shared with us, the hope that Jesus Christ brings to us, which we remember, especially at this time of year. May God bless everyone, and may each of us respond in love – to Him and toward one another.
Yours in Christ, Brian
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