TO LOVE AGAIN: A CHRISTMAS STORY

         John Foster stood 6 feet 2 inches tall, had dark hair with a hint of gray, and dark green eyes. He had the look of a stern responsible man which lended itself well to his profession as he had to be the boss to 20 people. He was a workaholic professionalist, never satisfied, but he always got the result that he wanted.

The ding of the microwave reminded John that his turkey potpie was ready. It had become his Thanksgiving tradition since he lost his wife and daughter some 20 years ago. John was a retail manager and Thanksgiving Day was his one of his only days off. He liked it that way. The busier he was the less time he had to think of them, especially during the holidays. If he had time to think he would find it difficult that he spends so much time helping others to have happy holidays, while his is nothing more than going through the motions, making appearances at church and quiet dinners at home consisting of potpies and microwave meals.

John was a very sad man, yet he held his sadness in so well that he had become functional in his misery. He paid his bills, went to church, and was a good boss, even if he was never satisfied with the store’s look or sales figures. He staid in the house, but had packed all of the memories and stored them away in the attic, someplace he would never go to again. So he was safe inside his safe place as he put up a brave front to the outside world.

The city of Spillman was an average city of average size. It was small enough that everybody knew most of everybody else in the town. Yet it was big enough to have it’s own police force, post office, grocery, and unfortunately an orphanage. A woman named Nancy who had lived in Spillman her whole life ran the orphanage. She knew everybody in the town and used that as much to her advantage when she would ask for donations. She was capable of getting enough food and to keep the orphanage warm, but was never ever to get any of the extras during the holidays.

This Thanksgiving was no different than any other Thanksgiving in the orphanage. There was enough food for the orphans to have a piece of turkey, scoop of mashed potatoes, and a small ladle of gravy. It pained Nancy very much that there wasn’t more food, but she did the best to keep a good face forward towards the orphans. After the meal, she gathered everybody together to read the story of the first Thanksgiving. She did her best to liven up the story with different voices for the different characters. After she finished she made them all go to their cots. She began to walk up and down the aisles to ensure they were all asleep. When she was satisfied they were all down she went to her desk to prepare the monthly expense reports.

Faith Noel was faking sleep in her cot waiting for the monitor to finish her sweep through the children. Faith was a petite 8 year old with long blond hair and blue eyes. The monitor was wearing squeaky shoes, probably to scare the children, or so they thought, but the children used it as a way to tell if she was near them. The monitor walked up and down the aisles checking to see if each child was asleep. Satisfied that they were, she walked to the front and sat down at her desk.

         Faith was quiet as she crept out of her bed, put on her boots and moved towards the windows. She slowly opened a window and climbed out the ground below her. She was very petite even for an 8 year old. She had on boots that were a little big for her, but they kept her feet warm, and her frock was thin but it would have to do for now. Once outside she ran to the streets and was quickly lost in the city. It was Thanksgiving Day and the streets were filled with department stores and city employees decorating for Christmas. There were carolers singing and people walking the streets. Everybody was happy. Faith was determined. She had a place to be.

         On a street corner they was an old man who had a group of people gathered listening to his stories. He was talking about the shining star and the three kings who choose to follow it to a tiny manger in a stable where a newborn dressed in swaddling cloth was lying. He had everybody eager to know the next part, even though everybody was familiar with the story. Faith caught the old man’s eye and he stopped for a moment. He looked at her and gave a little smile. Faith began skipping her way to her destination.

         The old man’s name was Zechariah and he was known in the town as the storyteller. He was an elderly gentleman who looked as if he could be everybody’s grandfather. He was a lean 6-foot tall man with blue eyes, gray eyes and beard. His Baptist Pastor father and Music Director mother taught him how to read by reading the bible. He learned how to break down the stories and make them interesting by attending his father’s church. His grandfather and grandmother had worked vaudeville as magicians. So telling good bible stories and working crowds were in his blood. In his youth he went to seminary school to become a pastor. After graduation he joined the army to become a chaplain, retiring as a full bird colonel. He used his knack of telling the stories of the bible and making them interesting to comfort the soldiers during the trying times of wars. That was his favorite part of the job. After he retired he traveled the country from one church to the next spreading the good news. He gave hope and comfort to those who had very little. He enjoyed going to the slums, food banks and rescue shelters. He even had a prison ministry. Everybody loved to listen to the storyteller’s stories, until the day came that he had gotten to old to travel. He eventually ended up in Spillman.

         In Spillman, Zechariah discovered a town of good doers and believers who needed a reminder every now and then of the good news of God’s love. He had the eyes to see the suffering of those whose pain was buried very deep and he could also see the lost souls of those who walked the earth going through the motions. He had been to the orphanage a few times and had recognized Faith.

A few miles away Faith entered the cemetery. She had been here every year for the past 5 years, visiting her mother’s grave as often as she could. She knew exactly where to go. Finally coming to her mother’s gravesite she wiped the snow that had built up around the headstone. Mary Noel – Loving Mother. She stared at the gravesite for a very long while then laid down and fell asleep. She was never more content in her short life. Zechariah was walking home when he decided to make a stop in the cemetery. He saw Faith lying down and took off his long overcoat and laid it over her. He then built a small fire next to her and left her alone with her contentment.

3 AM the Friday after Thanksgiving John Foster was on his way to open the retail store where he had worked for the past 25 years. He never wanted to work retail. He spent his youth learning to become a very talented artist. When he was 16 he enrolled at the best art school in the country. He had a passion for art and loved learning under the modern masters. While at school he met a model in one of his art classes. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever met. After the class he got up his nerve to ask her for a cup of coffee. Amazingly she agreed, and 3 years later they were married. He was a starving artist but his paintings, photos, and portraits were beginning to sell. He was also able to obtain employment as an art teacher at an after school project. He found to his amazement that he loved teaching children. They didn’t live fancy, but they did live.

         One day, his wife came to him to give him the happy news that she was pregnant. John immediately took a job at an art gallery, and soon become very adept as a salesman. One day one of his clients informed him that he was opening a retail store and he could use a man of his skills. He offered to double his salary and offered him insurance, which he would need with a new baby. John jumped at the chance and soon was able to move his wife and newborn into their very own house. Life was very good, except for the fact that from the Friday after Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve John was working all the time, it was after all the busiest time of the year for retailers.

         One year when his little girl was 8 years old; his wife and child were on their way home after a day of late Christmas shopping. They were driving down a street that was in the country, and there was a steep hill on one side. There had been a heavy snowfall that had melted due to the traffic. The roads were slippery and their car slipped on some black ice and careened off the road, rolled down the bottom of the hill. Both mother and child were killed instantly. That was almost 20 years ago and John was never the same. He had become a robot going through the motions. For the first few years he had his moments, but that had since gone away and John had learned to live with the pain.

         John opened and closed the store then did his normal routine of visiting their grave. He had bought a bright bouquet of flowers. He drove to the cemetery and walked to their grave. After sweeping of the snow from around the headstone he began to dig in the dirt and planted the bouquet. He bowed his head and said a quick prayer then sat awhile and stared at the graves. He loved them very much, and still missed them very much. But he knew that it didn’t do any good to linger so he stood up and began to walk to the car.

         A few feet away he noticed an unusual formation of snow around a grave. He walked closer and began to notice hair sticking out of the snow. He began to uncover the small child and felt for a pulse, it was there but faint. How she had survived was some sort of miracle. He grabbed the girl in his arms and began running to his car. Her lips and fingers were blue and she was very stiff. The winters in this area were very brutal. John had a few blankets in his car and after he laid her down in the back seat he wrapped her in the blankets. As he jumped behind the wheel he dialed the hospital to let them knew he was on the way.

         Once in the hospital the ER doctors went quickly to work to restore Faith’s vitals, which were faint. Everybody was amazed that she was still alive, even at the stage that she was in. First order of business was to warm her body temperature back to normal. After that they went to work restoring her breathing and heart rate. Faith was a fighter and she was determined to hang on to life. It was a tense few hours but soon Faith was stored back to a healthy 8-year-old child. She was feed, warm, and back to her old self. She didn’t speak to anybody so nobody knew who she was or were she was from. Nurses were making calls to the authorities. But Faith was very scared and she needed to be back at her mother’s grave. She needed to be near her mother now more than ever. She decided that she would sneak out at the first opportunity.

         In the waiting room John was waiting to hear any news about the little girl that he had brought into the hospital. He watched the doctors and nurses walk past him and not even give him a second glance. However, John was a patient man and he stayed patiently waiting for news. Finally the Sheriff walked in and inquired about the little girl that was brought in frozen. John walked to sheriff and told him he had brought her in to the hospital.

         “Well John what do you know about her?”

         “Nothing Carl, just a girl I found in the cemetery?”

         “She ran away from the orphanage last night.”

         “She’s an orphan? Well that explains a lot. The amount of snow that covered her must have been a least a full day.”

         “Nancy called me when she noticed she was missing, apparently this isn’t the first time she has run away.”

         “Why did she run away?”

         “Apparently she never knew her father and her mother died a few years back.”

         “So she has no family.”

         “That’s the sad part she has an aunt, but the aunt refused to adopt her. She didn’t fall into her plan.”

         “Oh man!”

         “Yeah, she has been passed from foster home to foster home, yet nobody wants to adopt. They think that she is a bad girl.”

         “She’s not bad, just troubled.”

         “How do you know that you don’t know her?”

         “Look how would you feel if all the people who were supposed to love you abandoned you. Everybody deserves to be loved.”

         “Wow John she really got to you.”

         “She was huddled in the snow next to her mother’s grave. Probably the last person who ever loved her, and all she wants is for somebody to love her.”

         “Alright John, listen do you want to take her in during the holidays?”

         John realized what he had said and realized what he had gotten himself into now. His big mouth had gotten himself into trouble once again. How could he back down after all that he had just said? But he couldn’t take care of her. He would be extremely busy the next month. He had no time for a little girl in his life. He just couldn’t do it to her.

         “It’s OK John I understand.”

         “I’m a horrible person aren’t I?”

         “No just busy I get it. I’ll take her back to the orphanage.”

As John drove home that night he couldn’t get rid of the little girl’s image from his mind. He could see her body lying lifeless in the snow. Her blue lips cracked from the biting snow. Then he thought about her sad life. No father, mother passed away, aunt didn’t want her. Apparently nobody wanted her. She was alone in the world, not unlike him. He barely slept that night. Was he doing the right thing for her? Or was it the right thing for him?

         The next morning he awoke and prepared himself for work. Suddenly his cell phone rang. It was Carl.

         “The little girl ran away from the hospital last night.”

         “Really, have you searched for her?”

“I figured that you knew where she was, could you possibly go get her and take her back to the orphanage this morning.”

         “Sure, I’ll take care of it Carl.”

         It was a quick reaction for John, but he knew that it was the right one. He called his assistant manager and told him that he would be late today. He then got in his car and drove to the cemetery. His mind was racing. When did she run away, how long was she there this time. Would he be too late?

         He arrived at the cemetery and walked towards the grave where the little girl was. He was relieved to see that she wasn’t covered with snow this time, and she seemed to be alert. He sat down next to her not exactly sure how to start.

         “Hello there, my name’s John. What’s yours?”

         “Faith”

         “Hello Faith that’s a beautiful name. Did your mommy name you that?”

         “Yes”

         “Sorry to hear about your mom. I’m sure that she loved you very much.”

         Faith didn’t respond to this, she just stared at the ground. John knew that he needed to change tactics. It had been 20 years since he had talked to a little girl. But he knew that he needed to earn her trust if he was going to get her back to the orphanage.

         “So what do you like to do Faith? Do you like to draw?”

         She nodded her head.

“I have some crayons and paper at my store. Would you like to draw me something?”

         She just shrugged.

         ”Would you like to come with me then.” He stood up and extended his hand to her.

         She took his hand and allowed him to lead her to his car.

         “Are you hungry?”

         Again she shook her head. John drove her to his favorite café and told her to order whatever she wanted. He then ran next door to his store and told them that he would be back later. He took the crayons and drawing paper to Faith and handed them to her. She was finishing her breakfast when she took out some crayons and began drawing. John ordered a short stack and sausage with coffee and ate while she drew. Faith was intent in her drawing. Long smooth strokes, blending of colors all lend themselves to the most beautiful Christmas tree that John had ever seen. For an 8-year-old Faith was very good. John could barely contain himself as he look at the picture. She was a pure genius John gave her another sheet and asked her to draw something else. A few minutes later she drew a picture of a beautiful woman that John assumes was her mother. It was just as wonderful as the Christmas tree.

         “You’re very good! Who taught you to draw like this?”

         “My mom”

         “These are very good.”

         “Thank You”

         John was disturbed how could anybody not want this little girl? She was beautiful, artistic, and enchanting. How could he even fathom taking her back to the cold heartless orphanage? But again how could he take her? He wouldn’t be any good for her working all the time. But she needed love as well. Could he give her any?

         “What were you doing at the cemetery?” Faith asked.

         “Visiting my wife and daughter.”

         “What happened to them?”

         “They died a long time ago.”

         “Sorry”

         “It’s ok it was long ago.”

         “You’re gonna take me back to the orphanage aren’t you?”

         “I have to get back to work. I work retail and that means that from Thanksgiving to Christmas I am very busy.”

         “Why?”

         “People are shopping, buying gifts for their family and friends. We also offer gift-wrapping. We hold sales. It is just a busy season.”

         “At the orphanage we usually get a pair of sock or a teddy bear if we are lucky.”

         “What about the Christmas dinner.”

         “Depends on the donations. Usually a bowl of soup and maybe some bread.”

         John’s heart was breaking and it was at that point that he made the decision. He was going to keep Faith during the holidays and show her the best holiday that she has ever had. Somehow someway he was going to make it work. He just couldn’t let her down. He owed it to his daughter.

John Foster was always a determined man. Once he set his mind to something, it was to be done. Many times in the past he had his whole crew in the store doing inventory until 4 in the morning. He was meticulous when it came to fixing the store plan and setting up displays. However, other than that John was known for was how many times he was right compared to being wrong. He had good instincts and trusted his gut reactions. He knew that this was the best decision that he had made in a long time.

         On the way to the orphanage he was going through the spiel of how he was going to convince Nancy to allow him to keep the little girl through the holidays. He was convinced that he was doing her a favor that she would end up thanking him. Faith however was very sad. She had no idea what the man was going to do. She thought that he was delivering her back to that awful place and leaving her never to see her again. But it didn’t matter, she ran away before and she would do it again.

         When they arrived to the orphanage, Nancy and Carl met them; John called Carl and asked him to be there. He got out, let Faith out of the car and walked towards them.

         “Hi Carl, Nancy”

         “John”

         “Is there someplace private where we can talk?”

         “Let’s go to my office”

         When they were in Nancy’s office, John told them of his plan. He explained how he was a church going, upstanding man in the community, and that he had enough room in his house for a little girl. He assured them that she would be taken care of, and that he was going to show her the best holiday of his life. Nancy and Carl listened to him and when he finished Nancy was the first to speak.

         “What about your job?”

         “I am the store manager, and I have assistants who have been with me for 10 years. They can handle the store, while I do my work from home. I should only have to go into the store for about 15 hours a week to cover some shifts.”

         Carl looked at him then asked. “What made you change your mind?”

         John was prepared for this question. He took out the Faith’s drawing of the Christmas tree. “Look at this drawing? It’s the most beautiful drawing of a Christmas tree I have ever seen. Look at those strokes! Look at those lines! Look at how she blended the colors. She is an imaginative, artistic and beautiful little girl. She needs somebody to show her some beauty.”

Nancy took this opportunity to speak. “What about after the holidays?”

         John wasn’t prepared for this question. His only concern was the holiday season. He hadn’t thought about after Christmas. Was he going to turn her back over to the orphanage? Would he try to foster her for a while? Maybe consider adoption? He hadn’t the answers to these questions. He had to consider that he was doing this for his own personal reasons. Who was he truly doing this for?

         “Can I assume by your silence that you didn’t think that far ahead?”

         “It’s a good question. And no I hadn’t thought that far ahead.”

         “Faith has already been in and out of foster homes and passed up for adoption too many times. Every time she comes back here she is more and more distant. She runs away. She doesn’t talk to anybody. She doesn’t play any games. I don’t want to put her through that again.”

         “I have to agree with Nancy. I don’t need a juvenile delinquent running lose through my town.”

“What would I need to do to show that my motives are pure?”

         “I want to assign a Child Protective Service counselor to monitor you. She will make random unannounced visits to make sure that you are providing a good environment for her. She will tell me if you would make a good adoptive father for her.”

         “You’re saying that I should adopt her?”

         “You have already made the first step, and I think that your motive is to show her all the love that you have stored for your daughter. I know that you are a good person, and you have had a heavy heart for too long. She could do as much good for you as you will do for her.”

         “You really think I would make a good father?”

         Carl answered this question. “You are a good father!”

         John’s mind began racing. He hadn’t truly thought about it that way. He knew that he could love another person. He knew that his heart was big enough, but was it strong enough? But John had already made the decision that he was going to take care of her through the holidays, so he agreed to her terms.

         John went over to Faith and knelt down to her level. “Would you like to come and live with me?”

Faith was silent. She didn’t know what to think. However, she knew that she couldn’t spend another day, or night, at the orphanage. Finally she nodded her approval. John gave her a warm hug and took her arm and walked out of the orphanage with her.

He went back to his store to have an impromptu meeting with his management staff. He told them to make announcements around the store of a staff meeting that will be held in the next few days. He told his assistant managers that they were going to be running the store this holiday season and that he had confidence in their abilities. He introduced them to Faith and said that the few hours that he would be in the store, she would be with him.

As they were walking out of the store they came across the storyteller. He walked up to Faith and knelt down to her level. He then gave her a warm hug.

“Nice to see that you two found each other.”

“My name is John and I am going to be taking care of her for awhile.”

“Nice to meet you John my name is Zechariah and if I can be of any help let me know.”

“Thanks I will.”

“I saw you lying next to your mother’s grave the other day Faith.”

“You saw her lying there? Why didn’t you take her to the hospital.”

“Because then you would have never came across her and I knew that you two had to meet.”

“She could’ve died”

“When I got home I said a prayer asking God to place his protective hand over her.”

“But she still could’ve died.”

“I had faith, you must have faith too.”

Zechariah knelt down to Faith’s level and reached into his pocket. “I want to give you something. This was a child’s bible that my father gave to me when I was you age. It tells all of the stories in the bible as a story, not as the lines in the bible. I read this everyday until I bought my first bible. I have been saving this to give this to a very special person. This is for you to keep.”

After that he straightened up to speak to John. “I checked on her that morning and knowing that you visit you’re wife and daughters grave every holiday. I knew that you would be there and that this time you would find her.”

They said their goodbyes to each other and John and Faith walked to the car. Every fiber of John’s inside was telling him to call Carl and tell him what the storyteller did. It didn’t feel right to him however. Maybe faith intervened to teach John how to love again. He had to be at the cemetery that day and he had to notice Faith covered in snow for a reason. So maybe the old man was right.

John drove Faith to his home. He showed her to her room and ran her a hot bath. When she was bathing he ran to the attic and found the box of his daughter’s clothes. He took them down to the washing machine and ran them through the wash. When she was finished with her bath he gave her some clean clothes and went down to start dinner. Looking in his fridge and freezer he decided that he needed to buy some real groceries, but he has a few staples. He decided to make her his famous meatloaf and mashed potatoes.

         While John was fixing dinner, Faith sat at the dinner table with her pad and crayons. Her imagination was in flight with new images as she was taking in her new surroundings. She opened the bible that the old man had given to her and look at some of the pictures. There were pictures of bearded men standing on mountains with stone tablets. She looked at some other pictures and decided to draw a picture of a house covered with snow with a big Christmas tree in the window, and bright stars in the sky. Then she drew a picture of a little girl ice-skating on a frozen pond. Finally she drew a picture of a horse drawn carriage going through snow-covered streets with decorated houses.

         John began setting the table for dinner and brought out the plates. Faith wasn’t used to being able to eat, as much food as she wanted, but John made sure that there was enough for seconds thirds fourths so on and so forth. After dinner, they went into the living room to watch some TV. Faith never got to watch much TV at the orphanage so she was fascinated. John decided to play his favorite Christmas movie, The Alistair Sim version of A Christmas Carol. After the movie John took Faith upstairs where he had a surprise in store for her. He had found his daughter’s favorite book, The Velveteen Rabbit, and had decided to read it to her at night.

         Faith became entranced with the story of the stuffed toy rabbit that was at first ignored only to become the constant companion of the boy who would become sick. She was worried when they rabbit was going to be burned because it was no longer wanted because it was “germ-ridden”. And when the rabbit cried a real tear to become real and ran outside to live with the rest of the rabbits to live happily ever after, Faith laughed and cried for joy. After John had finished reading there was a small moment between them. Faith, like the rabbit had cried a real tear and had become real enough to live with her own kind. John too had a small tear in his eye, the message of the book and Zechariah were hitting a spot that John had buried deep. John wiped the tear from his eyes and gave Faith a kiss. He tucked her into bed and wished her good night. Walking over to the switch he decided to take one last look at her, then he switched off the light.

         As John left her room he was feeling a kind of happiness that he had not felt in a long time. He was smiling in a different way it was a kind of giddiness. John was unable to sleep that night, still excited about the goings on, so he decided that he was going to do something that he hadn’t done in a long time. He went up to the attic and found the box of old Christmas decorations and the Christmas tree. He stayed up all night putting up them up it was as if he had never lost a day. He couldn’t wait to see Faith’s face in the morning when she awoke to this scene. As he was putting up the final decorations he heard a stirring upstairs. Faith had awoke and was starting to come downstairs. John ran to the bottom and met her. He told her to close her eyes. He then led her into the room, turned on the Christmas lights then told her to open her eyes.

         As Faith opened her eyes she was greeted to the most beautiful Christmas scene of her short life. There was a big Christmas tree that was decorated with bright and colorful ornaments. On top of the fireplace mantle there was a ceramic nativity scene that covered the entire mantle. On the front door there was a wonderful wreath. Finally on the coffee table there was a classic Victorian Christmas scene. Everything was perfect. The beauty overcame her. Her mother decorated their house for Christmas, but not to this extent.

“My mother told me a story about Christmas trees that she had heard in her Sunday school class. It seems that a small pagan boy was making a sacrifice at an Oak tree. Saint Boniface flattened the Oak with a blow of his fist. Then a small Fir tree sprang up in the place of the Oak tree. Boniface told the pagans that the Fir tree represented Christ. Since that time we use fir trees around the holiday season to represent the birth of Christ.”

Faith asked, “So why do we decorate them?”

“Well Martin Luther was walking home one evening and he spied how pretty the night stars looked through the branches of a pine tree. He immediately went home to decorate the tree with his family using candles and silver and gold tinsel. We use more traditional decorations, such as balled ornaments. The ball represent man’s walk with God for it has no beginning and no end. We also use other ornamental decorations, such as bells, garland and other decorations. What we are trying to represent is the joy and happiness that the birth of the Christ child brings to our life.”

         John then took her outside to see the house lights and the Santa and his Reindeer scene on top of the house. Santa face was white with rosy red cheeks. The reindeer were perfect in every detail, including the antlers on their head. He even had Rudolph leading the pack.

         “Santa Claus is another interesting story. Many people cheapen his likeness as a public relations gimmick by Thomas Nast to help Coca Cola sell more soda. But the truth is that there has been myths concerning Santa Claus going all the way back to the Early Christians. Every culture has their own version of Santa Claus, and their own name. But they all get their start from Saint Nicholas of Myra. He was an actually man whose life, deeds, and actions was the primary inspiration for Santa Claus.”

         “Tell me about him!”

         “This Sunday is Saint Nicholas of Myra day and I will take you to church for the story.”

Faith looked back upon the Santa scene and was in awe of the entire scene. However, it made her very sad as well. Her mother wasn’t here to enjoy it. How could Faith be happy with her mother dead? How can she even think happy thoughts? Was she betraying her mother? Overcome Faith decided to run. John chased after her and when he caught up with her she was crying violently. All John could think of was to hold her and comfort her.

“My mom told me that my dad left her when he found out she was pregnant with me. Mom was very sick and could barely work. I can remember times when I was eating and she wasn’t. She was always tired, but she always played with me. She would give me paper and pencils and stand behind me while I would draw. She always told me to draw the picture in my mind. I was always drawing stars, people, and anything else. She would always tell me that my pictures were beautiful. At Christmas she would decorate the house with whatever we could find. That what it always was, we would use whatever we could find. I always knew that she was sick and tired. I don’t think that she knew, but I did. Yet she always did the best for me.” 

They hugged while Faith cried. All John could do was hold her tight and allow her to cry. Her words were cutting through his heart. Had he done too much too soon? Did he need to take everything down? He held her tight while she cried. Finally Faith broke the hug and walk away. John took her back home and made her breakfast. Faith was quiet all morning. John decided it best to let her work out her own thoughts. He didn’t truly understand what was going on in her head, but he did know the feelings and knew that she needed to work through them. But John could help her and eventually she would open up to him. He knew it would take time and patience, but those were things that he had plenty of in his heart.

John had to go into town to do a few things; he had called a store meeting at the store. He had to tell the management staff and employees that he was not going to be in the store as much this year. He knew that he had hired a competent crew and was confident in their skills. His number could be found in the office and if they truly needed him they could get in touch with him. But he told them that now was the time for them to show what they were made of.

John didn’t want to leave Faith alone so he took her along with him. She sat quietly with her pad and paper drawing certain Christmas scenes. John noticed that as long as she had her crayons and drawing paper she was content. So as he wrapped up the meeting he grabbed her some more paper, drawing pencils, colored pencils, and another box of crayons. He wanted to make sure that she had plenty of colors. He wanted to fire her imagination. He had decided that he was going to read from the bible that Zechariah had given Faith. His hope was that would give her enough to draw upon for her pictures.

Next he made his way to the grocery store. John and Faith walked through the store. John would ask what her favorite food was, but Faith was not used to having choices. So John decided to buy some staples: bread, lunchmeats, spaghetti fixings, meat, turkey, chicken, canned soups and so on. His normal grocery bill for the month was never more than $100; so he was a tad taken aback when the final bill was almost $200. He just hoped that he had given Faith enough choices for food. He went home and unpacked the food, hoping that his fridge was big enough, it was. That night John had something special planned for Faith.

That night John decided to take Faith’s mind off what happened that morning. He grabbed his ice skates, and his daughters and decided to take her to outside skating rink. There was a fresh blanket of snow and the temperature had not gotten above freezing for a week so the ice was sure to be thick for them to skate. He wasn’t even sure that he could ice skate but he felt confident in his abilities to learn and he would be there if she fell. John dressed her in warm clothes and drove her to the rink.

When they got there she put on her skates. She was very graceful and was an accomplished skater. She skated around the rink with the adults and was even able to skate backwards. She was like a beautiful swan swimming on top of the frozen lake. She did figure 8s and even manage to do a few turns.

John however had trouble keeping up with her but he did manage to keep his eyes on her. She never ceased to amaze him. All he could think of was all the people that gave up on her. She was a true artist, had an imaginative mind, and was light on her feet. Her beauty was in the way she saw beauty in all things. True she had her troubles, but who didn’t. All she needed was to be loved, and everybody deserved to be loved. As John was lost in his thoughts, he wasn’t keeping an eye on where he was. He bumped into somebody and fell hard. He could hear Faith laugh and he realized that it was the first time he had heard her laugh.

“ Sorry Sir are you alright?”

“Yep nothing hurt except my pride”

As he looked up he realized that he was talking to a woman. She was a beautiful woman with long red hair. She helped him up and John noticed that she had sea blue eyes.

“Hi I’m Beth. Nancy told me to visit you tomorrow but I guess that I am early.” She laughed.

“Are you the Child Service Case Worker?”

“Yes that’s me. Nancy told me about you and Faith and I have to say that I am amazed that you got her out here.”

“She had a moment this morning and I wanted to keep her mind off of it.”

“What happened?”

“I pushed too hard I guess. I decorated the house for Christmas and I guess that it was too much for her.”

“She is very fragile despite her tough exterior. You need to take baby steps with her.”

“I have figured that out by now. I just hope that I can get her to trust me eventually.”

“If you show her trust she will!”

“I hope you are right. She needs somebody to love her.”

“Again don’t get ahead of yourself. Her life has been one big heartache and she may not know how to love.”

“I never thought of that. Makes sense. I promise that I will go slow.”

“I know that you will.”

By this time Faith had made her way over to them. John introduced her to Beth. He told her that she was going to keep an eye on them and that if there was anything that he couldn’t talk to him about that she could talk to her. Faith looked up shyly at Beth. Beth bent down to her level and extended her hand to her. Faith didn’t take it at first but after some reassurance by John she eventually shook hands with Beth.

“Hi Faith it’s nice to meet you.”

“Hi”

“I’m Beth and I want to tell you that I am only here to protect you so feel free to talk to me about anything. It will stay between us, I promise.” At this Beth crossed her heart.

“OK”

“Nancy tells me that you like to draw?”

Faith just shook her head

“She is really good. I’ll show you when you come over tomorrow.”

“Is that OK with you Faith?”

Again Faith just shook her head. She was really shy around new people, and she was definitely not sure about this new person.

“Did you see her ice skate?”

“Yes I did who taught you to ice skate?”

Faith didn’t say anything to this. She continued to stare at the ground.

“Faith why don’t you go ahead and skate some more, while Beth and I talk some more. OK?”

Faith shook her head and skated off.

“Well I can definitely see what you mean by baby steps.”

“She is definitely shy around women. But it does show me that she trust men so that is a point in your favor.”

“Why do you think that is?”

“Well when you think about it. Her died and left her alone. Her aunt wouldn’t take her. Nancy told me that all of fosters were single women and none of them adopt. So that leads itself to a certain amount of mistrust. Children do not know how to deal with those type of stressors.”

“And she never knew her father so in her mind a man has never intentionally hurt her?”

“Looks to be the case. You may be able to gain her trust faster than most. But still I will warn you, Baby Steps.”

John’s head was swimming. What had he gotten himself into now? He truly believed that if he showed her a good holiday that it would be enough for her. Now he knew that it would take more work than he expected. But he couldn’t dare let down like all the others.

“Here is my card. Feel free to call me if you have any questions or concerns. I’ll put my personal cell on the back. Call me day or night.”

“Thanks, will I be waking up a husband or boyfriend?”

“No just a cat.”

“I was just asking that wasn’t a line or anything.”

Beth laughed. “Relax, you will do fine I can tell.”

“Thanks Beth that makes me feel better.”

“OK I’ll see you tomorrow around 8:00?”

“That will be fine. See you then.”

“See you tomorrow Beth.”

Watching Beth walk away John then began to skate some more then took Faith to grab some dinner. He was trying to hide the doubts that he was having in his head. He was determined to show her confidence and a man who was in it for the long haul. He knew that children could tell you emotions, almost as much as a dog. He would have to be very careful for the next few weeks. She was already fragile, best not to add to her stress. As he read the bible that night, he did his best to liven up his reading with character voices and sounds of the season.

Sunday arrived, John and Faith dressed in their Sunday best for Church. Saint Nicholas of Myra day was always a packed house in the church. Everybody loved hearing the pastor’s stories concerning the man who became Santa Claus. As the pastor stepped up to the podium a hush fell on the crowd.

         “Today we celebrate the life of a pious man who spent his life, and his wealth, to serve God. A man, who suffered ruthless persecution for his faith, who became called wonderworker and miracle maker and is the inspiration for our greatest holiday icon, Santa Claus. Nicholas was born in the third century in a village of Patara, which is in the southern coast of Turkey, to wealthy parents. He was raised to be a devout Christian. While he was still very young he lost his parents to an epidemic. Nicholas used his inheritance to follow Jesus’ words sell what you own and give the money to the poor. He assisted the needy, sick and suffering. There is a tale that he wrapped three bags of gold and stuffed them down the chimney so that a poor man would not have to sell his daughters into slavery or prostitution. That act provided them with a dowry so they could be married. Nicholas was also a protector of children. There is a legend that tells of a famine that struck an island and of a malicious butcher who lured three little children to his shop to be butchered and placed in a barrel to cure so that he could sell them as meat. While Nicholas was visiting the famine victims and care for the hungry he went to visit the butcher. He saw what the butcher had done and resurrected the children. There are many other legends but the common theme is they tell of a man who cared for others above himself and of a man who was a selfless giver who did not seek fame for his acts, instead choose to act in secret as he gave of himself. And that my friends is why he has became the true icon of Christmas Saint Nick.” 

The next week was smooth. John and Faith went skating most nights, except for the one night that John managed to secure a horse drawn carriage ride through the park. Faith gazed at the majestic animal, a dark brown Clydesdale horse with a snow-white mane.  The horse owner even took Faith to pet the horse and give a carrot. The horse was so gentle that Faith was able to pet its muzzle. The horse would whiney and snuggle up against Faith. As they got into the carriage, the horse driver covered them up with blankets and gave them warm cups of hot chocolate to drink.

They rode through the park and looked at the lights. The driver even took them through some housing additions that had beautiful Christmas scenes. The wind was biting and cold, but Faith enjoyed every minute of it. When her mother was still alive they didn’t live in the best editions, and very few of the houses did elaborate decorations, except for theirs. Her mother made most of the decoration by hand, even down to sewing the clothes for the Nativity scene. It was a tradition that she handed down to Faith.

“Mister?”

“You can call me John.”

“OK John, do you know where they put stuff when a person dies?”

“Depends on what it is?”

“Christmas decorations.”

“Were they in your old house?

“Yes in the attic.”

“They might still be there. Do you remember where you lived?”

Faith tried to remember but all she could remember was a small 1 bedroom brown A-frame house. There was a small porch and a screened front door. But as far as where it was, she had no idea.

“I can ask Carl and Nancy if they have any records on your previous address.”

“No it’s ok.”

“If you don’t want to go to the house you don’t have to accompany me.”

“It isn’t that, its just maybe they won’t look good with your stuff. We were poor and my mom made them with her own hands. She sewed the costumes for the Nativity scenes. She painted a baby doll to be baby Jesus. Our ornaments were all paper; she would fold them to be icicles and snowflakes. She even made an elaborate angel to go on top of the tree. She didn’t just decorate the tree, she made some fake snow with laundry detergent and put that on the tree and around the windows. She would gather up pinecones and turn them into wreaths, and little people. We didn’t have much but she made sure that our house was pretty.”

John was crying upon hearing this. He knew that he needed to do his best to find those things. That must have been why she broke down upon seeing his decorations. His were store bought and “rich-looking”. Her mom made a home. He decorated his house. After the horse drawn carriage ride, John drove to the sheriff station and asked to speak to Carl. Carl called over to the hospital and asked the duty nurse to call up Mary Noel’s file. The address was on there and Carl drove them to the house.

The house was unoccupied. Carl went to the front door and they found it unlocked. There wasn’t electricity so Carl pulled out his flashlight and escorted them up to the attic. There were many boxes up there. Carl thought that it would be best to remove them from the attic. So he made a call to his deputies and asked them to bring their truck over to the house. A few moments later all of the boxes were removed and they were on their way to John’s house.

After they got the boxes into the house. John, Carl and Faith went through the boxes until the found the Christmas stuff. John and Carl went to the task of removing the decorations that John put up, while Faith sorted the stuff. As stuff was removed, Faith put out her mom’s stuff. While Carl went to undo the tree, John replaced them with the hand made stuff. After a few hours they all stood back to admire their work. Then John and Carl went outside to set up the Nativity scene. They affixed the parts into the ground, and then John went into the garage to get the floodlights and placed them in front of the Nativity scene. He decided to call his neighbors over for a preview.

The neighbors arrived and were amazed at the craftsmanship of the Three Wise Men, Mary, Joseph, all the animals, the Star and baby Jesus. John explained that Faith’s mom hand made them all including sewing all the costumes. They would stand back to take the full scene. It was the most beautiful Nativity scene. Julie told them that she paid over $500 for her scene and it wasn’t nearly as beautiful. Since the sun was down the night was getting too cold. So John invited them in for coffee. As they entered the house they were more amazed at the inside. Faith had hung the snowflakes all over the inside, and was even making some more to hang. She had made some paper dolls and hung them over the entrance to the dining room. They weren’t the normal paper dolls that kids would make by folding paper a few times and making some cuts. Instead, she made them different colors. Some were dressed as men. Some were dressed as men. She even had the one in the center drawn as a priest. They were all holding hands with huge smiles on their faces. She also managed to create a beautifully ornate star and hung it over the paper dolls.

John was even more emotional than before, his house was absolutely beautiful. Everybody in the house was in awe at the skill of the little girl that apparently nobody wanted. As they sat on the sofa, drinking their coffee, John showed them the drawings that Faith had completed. There were amazing scenes of winters, and Christmas houses. They were just as amazed as John was at her skill level. She didn’t draw like an 8-year-old. She definitely had artistic skills and a creative imagination. John told them all that he was getting her a painting set for Christmas.

“You used to paint didn’t you John?” Carl asked.

“A long time ago. I studied with some of the modern masters and I wasn’t this good when I was her age. Imagine what she could do by going to art school? She could become the female Thomas Kincaid.”

John paused to take a sip of coffee. What was more amazing to him was the fact that even though she was so troubled she never lost her creativity. She wasn’t drawing bloody corpses, or dead bodies. Somehow through all that she had suffered through, she still managed to see the beauty in things. Not only that, but she could accurately create it. She didn’t just draw a tree, she create a living creation on the page. Her snow seemed to be coming out of the page. If you stared at the little girl ice-skating you could almost see her moving across the frozen pond. They were beautifully perfect works of art.

“Well John I have to admit you have done a wonderful job with her. Beth has had nothing but good things to say about you. She can tell that Faith is truly happy when she is with you.”

“I hope so. Beth told me to take baby steps, so I have been going slowly with her. I don’t want to cause her any more harm. She has already been hurt to much in her short life.”

“Just remember that kids can tell if you are faking it.”

“Yeah they are like human lie detectors.”

“I know that is what makes this so scary.”

“Just be yourself and you will do fine.”

“Here’s to hoping you all the best John.”

“Thanks everybody.”

After their coffee they all sat around and talked about what was going on in the town. Christmas was a couple of weeks away and most of them hadn’t done any Christmas shopping. John told them that there was going to be a huge sale next week in the store, and he will tell his people to give them free gift-wrapping and delivery on the bigger items. After awhile they all got up to leave. John went upstairs to check on Faith. She was fast asleep and tonight she actually had a smile on her face. Some nights John could hear her crying and he would go in to comfort her. He had a feeling that tonight would not be one of those nights.

         The next day Zechariah stopped by the house to see how Faith was doing. When John explained to him about her mother’s decoration the old storyteller had a huge grin on his face. He looked Faith square in the eye.

“Do you know the story about those three wise men you mother so beautifully decorated outside?”

Faith shook her head.

“A long time ago there was a very special birth of a very special child, not unlike yourself. His birth was so heavenly that there was a new star located in the sky. Unlike the other stars, which moved according to the movement of the earth, this star was fixed to one single point. Three Kings noticed the new star and knew the meaning of it. The packed up their houses and decided to follow the direction of the star. They knew that when they located the star’s location that they were certain to find the very special child, who would become the King of all Kings with a never-ending reign among men. When their journey ended, and believe me it was not without it’s own peril, they found a child wrapped in swaddling cloths in a manger. These three kings of men went into the stable and bowed themselves down to this infant child. They knew that he was certainly the king that they sought. They brought him special gifts of gold frankincense and myrrh. The three kings, who were all worthy of praise themselves, gave praise to a newborn child, the baby Jesus. That is how the story of our lord’s birth.”

Zechariah, John and Faith decided to take a walking tour of Spillman. Zechariah took them to the Church. John introduced Faith to the pastor and the deacon. John had made it a habit to keep some of Faith’s pictures on him. He took this opportunity to show them to the pastor and deacon. He had her drawing of Moses with the two tablets standing on the mountainside. The pastor was amazed at the detail of her drawing.

“Did you copy this from somewhere?”

“He gave me a bible that had some pictures in it. I drew one of them.”

“This is very pretty.”

“Thank you.”

After that they decided to visit the orphanage. Faith had very few friends there, but she was assured that she was only going to be there a few moments. Zechariah and John talked to Nancy while Faith talked to some of the other orphans. Over all it was a pleasant visit.

They ended the night at the skating rink. Zechariah and John would talk while Faith would skate.

“You have truly done a wonderful job with her. Nancy told me that she didn’t draw one picture the entire three years that she was there. You got her to draw again. It was something simple that you did.”

“All I did was buy her some paper and crayons.”

“It is the smallest things that we do that children appreciate.”

“I have started praying since she came into my life again. The last time I prayed was when my wife and daughter were alive. Oh I would pray at church, and when I would visit their grave. But I have prayed every day that God would guide my steps.”

“He has and he will continue to do so. All he asks for is a little faith. You always had that.”

         Again they said their goodbyes and John took Faith home. She was tired when they got there so he took her straight to bed. As he tucked her into bed, she grabbed a hold of his hand. They held hands for a while as she fell asleep. He turned off her light and went to bed.

A few days passed by and John had gotten her art supplies bought and wrapped. He had hidden it up in the attic. When he was up there he happened to see the box of the last Christmas box. He had bought his little girl a Victorian Doll for Christmas. He looked at the doll and remembered when he bought it for her. He could imagine the look on her face at she looked upon the doll. It was dressed in a beautiful royal purple dress, and had a red bow in her brown hair. The eyes were a bright green.

John hadn’t thought about his wife and daughter since he brought Faith home. Now looking at the doll all he could do was think of them. It wasn’t long before he was crying as the guilt began to overcome him. When he was married and had a child he didn’t appreciate what he had. He was too busy providing for them. He couldn’t even be there for them when they decided to do some Christmas shopping on the snowiest day of the season. He should have been there to keep them safe. But he wasn’t there, and he would never be able to erase that pain from his heart.

The doorbell rang. John wiped his eyes and went downstairs. It was Beth at the door. John invited her in and poured her a cup of coffee.

“How have you been John?”

“OK, I went to Faith’s old house and picked up some of her Christmas decorations and other stuff. Her mom made all of this stuff. Did you see the nativity scene outside?”

“Yes I did.”

“Faith’s mom not only made the figures but sewed the costumes.”

“So that must be where Faith gets her artistic ability.”

“Must be. Look over here. She made these paper dolls and the star.”

“She has a true gift.”

“I want to encourage her but how do I do that without pushing her too hard?”

“You have to let her go at her own speed. She obviously loves doing it, so she will keep on doing it. Let her go at her own speed.”

“I bought her art supplies and a paint set for Christmas.”

“That’s perfect.”

“I’m trying to take baby steps as you suggested but I also find myself making these big plans for her. I have to decide if I am doing this for her or myself.”

“That’s the hard thing not to do. You have to separate yourself from her. You know what you wanted to do when you were her age. You need to let her decide what she wants to do with her life.”

“She draws all the time. When I have to take her to the store, all I have to do is stick her in my office with her drawing stuff and she will keep herself amused for hours. Have you seen her new drawings?”

“No let me see them.”

John got out her newest drawing and took them over to Beth. While she was looking at them he warmed up her coffee. Like everybody else, Beth was always amazed at her skill. Her latest one was a Dickens scene. There was Scrooge and Marley’s counting house with Scrooge in his office and Cratchett huddled by his candle for warmth. You could see the stove heater with a tiny fire burning. Every detail was covered. She could barely read, but it was obvious that she had seen this scene somewhere before and could recreate it to the last detail.

“Amazing isn’t it?”

Beth had tears in her eyes. “Yes it is.”

“A true artist can evoke emotions in you that have been buried so deep that you weren’t aware they were there still.”

“She has a true gift.”

“What amazes me is that she can draw such depth at a young age. She hasn’t truly discovered the world yet. When she does she will be a true genius.”

“Anyway, as you know next week is Christmas and I have to make an inspection on that day. I want to see how she will react under a holiday stressor.”

“Can you come by and spend the day? I am going to fry a turkey and make the whole dinner myself. I am a little nervous and could use some moral support. I’m not asking you on a date, purely professional.”

Beth let out a little laugh. “Sounds good. You are my only client this time of year so I can spend it with you. I can bring over my famous dressing, green bean casserole, and special sweet corn.”

“That will be a great help. I can handle the mashed potatoes, and rolls. There will only be the three of us so no need to go out of the way. What do you say to 6pm Christmas Eve?”

“Sounds good. Try not to burn the house down when you fry the turkey.”

“No promises, but I will do my best.”

As Beth walked to her car, she couldn’t help but be amazed. Not only at Faith’s talent, but also at John’s true love for her. She had noticed that he was crying before she arrived but decided not to make an issue out of it. They both had their own issues to deal with during the holidays. But her instincts told her that they would help each other get through the pain. She drove off to make plans for her Christmas Eve dishes.

Faith was in her room. She was drawing again, but she seemed to be disturbed by this one. She was drawing a fireplace with a roaring fire. Two stockings were hung on the mantle. There was a sofa with a mother and daughter sitting on it. The mother was reading to her daughter, and the daughter was looking into the book at the same time. Faith seemed to be unsatisfied with this one. She kept erasing the mother’s face and redrawing it. Tears were flowing down her face. She finally gave up and threw the book against the wall.

John heard this and ran upstairs to Faith’s room. He found her crying on her bed. He saw where she had thrown her new drawing and went over to pick it up. He studied the drawing and knew her distress. He went over to her and sat next to her on the bed.

“After Natalie and Jessica passed, I threw myself into my work. I figured if I didn’t think about them, there would be no pain. However, I was only fooling myself. Soon I would see a mother and little girl and be reminded of them. I would find certain items of theirs and be curled up in a ball. All I could do was pack everything up and take it upstairs where I couldn’t see it. I did everything I could to erase their memory. But all I was doing was putting the pain off. The pain will find you sooner or later. If the pain finds you sooner then you have longer to deal with the pain. If it is too late, then the pain will eventually find you when you least expect it to find you.”

“So adults cry?”

John laughed. ”All the time!”

John hugged Faith and gently rocked her to sleep. After she was asleep, John went up to the attic and wrapped the doll as gift he was going to give to Faith. He looked into the box some more and decided that he was going to bring their stuff downstairs and put them back into his room. He looked at the old photos and was overcome by the memories. However, this time he didn’t bottle up his emotions. He allowed himself to cry, laugh and smile. He felt better than he had for a long time.

The days leading up to Christmas passed too quickly for John. He was determined to make everything perfect for Faith. He decided to arrange a Christmas day feast for the orphans, so he bought extra turkeys, hams, chickens, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and all the other things. He recruited Carl, and some of his crew to help. Christmas day was the only day that they had off, but a few of them did not have family so this was a better alternative then eating a TV dinner at home. When he told Beth and Nancy of his plan they also said that they would help anyway they could. His pastor and deacon recruited the men’s, women’s and youth group to help as well.

John had never felt the Christmas spirit as deeply as he had this year. Not even when his wife and daughter were alive. He recognized that it was due to Faith that he was feeling this way. She was a troubled child, not perfect in most ways, but her love of beauty, art, and the simpler things in life gave her a simple glow. She didn’t trust most people, mostly women, but that did not prevent her from acting as a perfect angel around company. Her manners were exquisite. She had even hugged and apologized to Nancy for being naughty to her. Nancy assured her that she understood, and that she always knew that she was a good girl.

John was busy planning every last detail for the perfect Christmas and he was growing more and more hopeful with Faith’s confidence that he was going to make everything perfect. A few days before Christmas Eve, John found CDs of his favorite Christmas story, The Cinnamon Bear. He heard that when he was a child and his memories were vivid of the story and of the children in the story. So one night he made some hot chocolate and gingerbread men cookies and set up the CD player. As he played the CDs he watched Faith’s reaction. She picked up some colored pencils and crayons, and did what she did best. She drew the images that were in her head.

Faith drew the adventures of the Barton twins, Paddy O’Cinnamon, Crazy Quilt Dragon, Scissor Soldiers and other figures of the story. She could sense the Root Beer Ocean, the Suzy Q captained by Captain Tatty and the Candy Pirates, Fee-Fo, Queen Mellissa, and Snappersnick the Crooning Crocodile. Faith’s eyes were aglow with the sounds emanating from the CD concerning this wonderful adventure. John knew that he had to make this a holiday tradition for a long time to come.

Finally the big day arrived. John had never prepared a Christmas dinner before so he was nervous. He needed for everything to be perfect. But he managed to not burn the turkey or any of the other side dishes. Beth arrived around 5pm to help John finish. They got everything prepared and the table was beautifully set. Faith had twisted the construction paper into little angels and painted their names on them. For Beth she got a collection of different colored papers and created a beautiful arrangement of flowers. She twisted some beautiful yellow and red roses as well as some purple, blue, green and orange carnations. She gave them to Beth as she sat down at the dinner table.

“Why thank you Faith, they are the most beautiful flowers I have ever received.”

“May we now bow our heads for the prayer?

Our precious father who art in heaven we thank thee for giving us such blessings in our life as we gather to remember the birth of our son that you gave to the world to remove us from sin. We thank you for giving us Faith in our life. Not only the beautiful little girl who now sits at our table, but the wonderful gift of Faith that you have given to all mankind that we are bound to remember at this most joyous of seasons. For it is through Faith that we receive salvation and our final reward in heaven. Bless those who have prepared meals for their family and loved ones. Bless those who stand in harms way so that we may live in peace. Bless all of those who need a blessing in their life. We ask this in your most precious name. Amen”

They then began to enjoy the wonderful meal that was prepared for them. Faith had never gotten used to having enough to eat so she was hesitant to go for seconds, but when she saw that both John and Beth were going for seconds she then went to fill her plate another time. After dinner, John made hot chocolate and coffee and gathered everybody around to watch Faith open her Christmas gifts. Faith usually only received one gift, so when all of the gifts were gathered around her, her eyes grew large. She was very neat as she unwrapped the gifts, placing the Christmas paper neatly folded on the sofa. Beth had bought Faith some pretty clothes and dresses. John eyes were filled with joy as he watched her open and become excited at his gifts. In addition to the art set and doll he also bought her some shoes, underwear, socks, and some reading books. They were early readers, so Faith understood that they were meant to teach her how to read. John assured her that he was going to be there to help her read.

After all of the presents were opened. Faith went upstairs to put on one of her new dresses. She decided that since it was a special occasion that she would put her hair into pigtails like her mom used to do for her. Heading downstairs she was greeted by both John and Beth. They both commented on how beautiful she was. John was taking her and Beth to church. As they arrived the Pastor and Deacon greeted them and they found a spot close to the front. As everybody was seated the service began with the singing of Christmas carols. Faith was familiar with them and she had a beautiful voice as she sang. Finally the pastor took his spot at the altar and began to speak.

“My friends I have a wonderful surprise for you this evening. Most of you know this man and have become enamored with his version of the Christmas Story. I decided that he was aptly qualified to regal us with the tale. It is now my pleasure to bring to the stage, Mr. Zechariah the story teller.”

The old man that Faith saw when she was running away to see her mother’s grave on Thanksgiving stood up and walked towards the stage. As he spied Faith he walked over to her and patted her on the head, giving her a soft and warm smile. Faith looked up at him and returned the smile to him. He was a gentle soul and he had a power to see into the soul of all man. He continued his walk towards the stage stopping every so often to shake hands with certain members of the congregations. As he arrived to the altar he hugged the Father and positioned himself behind the altar as he prepared to speak.

         “My friends I greet you warmly on this most magical of evenings. A few millennia ago some very special children were born who were to be the saviors of all mankind. The story however has to be extrapolated between the four gospels. I am sure that there are some smarter persons who know and understand why the four gospels do not all tell the same story. But if you combine them you get at the heart of the matter. So here is the story of the two very special children who were born for us. In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest name Zechariah who was married to the daughter of Aaron whose name was Elizabeth. Both of them were of advance age, and because Elizabeth was barren they were not blessed with children. However they were both righteous people who kept God’s commandments. One day before a temple service Zechariah was in the sanctuary burning incense. The angel of the Lord appeared before him standing to the right of the altar. Zechariah became troubled at the sight of the image of the angel. But the angel said to him do not be afraid for your prayer has been answered. Elizabeth will bear you a son and you shall name him John. Many will rejoice at his birth. He will be great in the sight of the Lord. He will not drink wine nor strong drink and will be filled with the Holy Spirit within his mother’s womb. He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will go in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of fathers towards their children and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord Needless to say Zechariah was in disbelief but the angel then said. I am Gabriel who stands before God and I was sent here to announce to you this good news. And as it turned out Elizabeth did conceive and give birth to a son who was to become John the Baptist. However Gabriel was not finished spreading the good news of the Lord. After Elizabeth was with child, Gabriel was sent to a town of Galilee called Nazareth. Upon his arrival he visited a virgin by the name of Mary who was betrothed to a carpenter named Joseph of the house of David. Coming to her he said Hailed favored one the lord is with you. Mary, like Zechariah, was also troubled at the sight. But Gabriel spoke onto her saying do not be afraid Mary for you have found favor with God. Behold you will conceive a child in your womb and bear a son, naming him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the son of the most high and the Lord God will give him the throne of David, his father. And he will rule over the house of Jacob forever and his rule will see no end. Mary became quite concerned upon hearing this, for she had never had relations with a man. Gabriel said unto her that the Holy Spirit will come unto you and the power of the most high will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. Gabriel then informed Mary of Elizabeth’s pregnancy for nothing was impossible to the Lord God. Mary then proclaimed Behold I am the handmaiden of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word. After the angel departed from Mary, she went to the hill country to the town of Judah. Upon their greeting the child in the womb of Elizabeth leapt and Elizabeth became filled with the Holy Spirit and proclaimed in a loud voice most blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. For at the sound of your voice the child in my womb leapt. Now Caesar Augustus gave when Mary was heavy with child a decree that the whole world should be enrolled. Joseph and Mary had to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem to be enrolled. Upon arriving in Bethlehem, Mary went into labor. She gave birth to his firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manager because there were was no room at the inn. Now when Jesus was born there was an appearance of a star in the heavens. There were a group of Magi from the east that had arrived in Jerusalem. They made inquiries as to the newborn King of the Jews. Of course Herod heard of this and called the magi to him. He sent them to Bethlehem to search diligently for the child and then bring him the word that he may pay homage to the newborn king. In secret Herod wanted to learn where the child was so that he could have him murdered. After their meeting they followed the star to Bethlehem until they found the spot upon which it laid Upon entering the place where Mary, Joseph and the newborn baby Jesus were, they prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They however never returned to Herod for they were warned in a dream not to go back. So they departed for their country in another direction. However, the magi were not the only visitors of the baby Jesus that night. For there were shepherds in that region who were watching their flock that night. Angels of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone all around them. The Angels bid them not to be afraid for today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Then the sky filled with the angels of the lord who were all singing Glory to God in the Highest and on earth peace on whom his favor rests. So to, just as the magi, the shepherds went to the manger and found the baby Jesus in swaddling clothes. And that baby as you have been told by now is Jesus, whom God sent down to save us from our own sins. All that he asks is that we have faith, hope and love in our hearts. Not just this day, but all the days of our lives.”

After Zechariah was finished he calmly and quietly made it back to his seat. The whole congregation was silent except for the sounds of muffled cries. The message had hit its mark and was settling in to the minds of the people. The pastor decided to end the service quickly after that. For he knew that there was much work to be done tomorrow and the people needed their rest.

As Faith, Beth and John went out into the foyer they were met by some of the friends and neighbors. Everybody commented on the beautiful dress that she was wearing, and the way that she had her hair done. She did look very beautiful, and everybody was quick to give her a hug and kiss on her cheek. Faith though it strange that so many strangers were showing her affection. But she decided that this was definitely something that she could get used to. As she fell asleep that night she had dreams of ancient civilizations and of small children who would become the king of all men.

The next morning, Faith awoke to a house full of people. It was very busy. They all seemed to be preparing something. As Faith made her way down the stairs she was greeted by the hugs and kisses of the people in the house. Faith was still uncomfortable around strangers, but she did know some of the people and was very friendly around them. She even hugged Beth back. John told her to go upstairs and get dressed for he and the townspeople had arranged a very special surprise for her.

Faith went upstairs and put on another dress that Beth had bought her. She did her hair like she had the night before. Everybody seemed to like that look on her, and she did enjoy the attention that everybody gave her. Finally she went downstairs, and all of the people were loading trucks and vans with boxes and other stuff. Faith’s suspicions were beginning to grow, but she followed John and Beth to John’s truck as the drove off to her surprise. Her head was swimming as to what her surprise could be. She had already been given so much what else could she receive?

Soon Faith figured that they were all going to the orphanage. Her curiosity was definitely beginning to grow. As they got closer she could see the monitor directing everybody where to go. John drove Faith to the front door, and Nancy grabbed her and took her inside the orphanage. Once inside, she was greeted with a beautifully decorated gymnasium. They usually put out decorations, but never to this extent. The place seemed warm, vibrant, and cozy. Nancy took Faith into her office where there was a strange man sitting in front of Nancy’s desk. Nancy sat Faith down in the other chair and sat behind her desk talking to the gentleman.

Finally John appeared and went over and sat down next to Faith. He seemed to be out of breath and he had a strange smell about him. His hand looked as if they had been burned on something but John was attempting to hide anything he simply sat down next to Faith. Finally the strange gentleman stood up and looked at Faith.

         “Hello Faith my name is Tom and I am the mayor here. I have been keeping track of your progress through Nancy, Beth and of course John. They have all agreed that you are a very special girl. You have taught them what the true meaning of Christmas is, and that by looking for the beauty in all things you become the beauty yourself. I’m afraid that as we grow older that lesson becomes lost on us. Oh sure, some of us plant trees and flowers, or we volunteer to fix playgrounds or build houses; but we loose sight of where true charity is to begin. Right here at home! I want to thank you for teaching all of us this very important lesson and I pray that you have better days then you have had before now. If there is anything I can do, do not hesitate to ask. You are a very special girl.”

Faith never imagined that she had such an impact. All she could do right now was think about her mother and what she must be doing in heaven. She wasn’t an angel or a hero, just a girl who likes to draw. Special? She certainly didn’t feel very special, well except for this moment. The mayor, Nancy, and John took Faith inside the gymnasium where the biggest serving line of food was set out before the orphans. All of the orphans had their mouths watering and their eyes were amazed at the amount of food spread out before them. They had truly never seen that much food in their lives.

         The mayor stepped up to the microphone. “Good morning boys and girls, and ladies and gentlemen! My name is Tom and I want to welcome you to the Faith Noel Charity Christmas dinner. As many of you know there has been a very special little girl introduced into our lives, and that little girl has taught most of us adults something about beauty. And that is the true beauty that lies in a little girl’s heart. She probably doesn’t think that she is very special, but if you ask any of the people who have had the honor of being around her, they will all agree. She is very special. But without further ado let us get to the meal that the townspeople have created for some other very special people. Father May I ask you to come up here and offer a blessing?”

         The father walked to the microphone and before he spoke he crossed everybody in the room and offered a silent blessing. ”Let’s us all bow our heads. Our most gracious and heavenly father, when your son walked upon the earth on the shores of Galilee he said to his disciples let the little children come to me. The children were your most precious gift that you have bestowed upon us because it is through them that we are to learn humility and beauty and grace. Sometimes however we forget that as we go along the way. But now through one of the most precious of your children we have come to understand that opportunity once again. I ask in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit that you bless all of the children in this place. Bless the person who provides for them year round. Bless the people who have sacrificed their holiday to be here with these people. Bless the makers of the food. Also bless those who steadfastly guard the gates of evil, and put themselves in harm’s way so that we may know peace and freedom. We humbly ask all of theses as you servants. Amen”

After the prayer all of the adults went into the serving line and readied themselves to serve the food for the children. Nancy gathered all of the children and brought them to the head of the line. She bade them not to be shy and ask for all that they wanted. There was plenty of food and there will be plenty of leftovers as well. Faith went up to John and asked where she could help. John laughed and said that she could help by eating some of the food. Instead, Faith went up on the stage where the CD player was and put in a Christmas CD. She also would grab bowls of gravy and walk around the room making sure all of the kids had plenty of gravy.

The adults meanwhile served all of the kids and even made the rounds with: mashed potatoes, candied yams, stuffing, dressing, vegetables, rolls, ham, chicken, and especially the turkey. The orphans had never had such a meal. They weren’t used to being so full. But after they played some games they were ready for pies, cookies and hot chocolate, which the adults had in ready supply. It was hard to determine who was having a better time the kids or the adults.

But the best event was yet to come. Zechariah the Story Teller came in later that morning dressed as Santa Claus. He had bags full of toys and presents for all of the orphans. This year it wasn’t going to be socks for Christmas. Instead there were board games, video games, dolls, model trains, model airplanes, model cars, and anything else that the townspeople were willing to donate for this year. It was the best years donation. All of the orphans got at least 3 presents, and their eyes were filled with joy.

Santa even stayed after delivering the presents and talked to the children. They had many questions concerning his workshop, elves, Mrs. Claus, the North Pole, the reindeer and other such things. None of the children had ever seen a reindeer and much to their surprise, there was a live reindeer outside of the orphanage. There were also baby sheep, ducks, geese, and other petting type animals provided by a nearby zoo. The orphans were amazed and the spent a few hours with the animal. There were even reindeer rides available. Also the horse drawn carriage was there offering free rides to all who wanted one. It was truly a wonderful day for all.

As the children were outside enjoying the petting zoo, reindeer rides, and carriage rides; the adults were inside packing the food up for storage. There would be plenty of leftovers and the cook was already deciding what she was going to do for the next few meals. The grocery manager spoke to the cook and explained that if the food ran out before the money becomes available to give him a call. He always has plenty of food in back stock and he will make sure to order plenty of extra fruits, vegetables, and other items for the orphanage to have year round. There were also some contractors who were speaking to Nancy about her building needs. Windows needed replaces, new heating and air conditioning, new roof. They all agreed to do the work free of charge and gave her their business cards and instructed her to call for any future repairs.

Nancy began to cry. She had dedicated her life for the care of orphans. She was very good at gathering donations to make sure that there was food and comfort, but not to this extent. She was always struggling to make ends meet. Yet everyday she was out there fighting the good fight, because she knew as most of the townspeople are now coming to realize that all they need is to be loved. Her only hope was that this would last beyond the holiday season. She sure hoped that it would.

John and Beth noticed Nancy crying and walked over to her. John gave her his hanky as Beth wrapped her arms around her.

         “Faith is truly a very special child!”

         “I know Nancy, I’ve always known.”

         “When you adopt her you have got to promise that you will love and support her and that she will never know pain and fear. And that you give her all the love that she has given to us.”

         “I will most definitely do my best. Besides now that I have you two to watch over me I know that I can’t mess up ever. She has taught me so much these last few weeks. There are times that she needs to cry, times she needs to play, times she needs to laugh, and time to be left alone. She is a little girl and we will have our struggles down the road. However, I have n doubt that she will grow up to be a beautiful young woman who will see the beauty in all. And that means that I will have my hands full with boyfriends and such things. But hopefully by then I will be ready. I just hope that she will be ready as well.”

         Beth spoke. “She will be John, as she has already shown today. She will be a champion among women I can just sense it. Luckily she has the greatest of men to guide her through this journey.”

         “Well I don’t know about all that, I believe that she will teach more than I will ever teach her. But it should make for a wonderful life.”

         Nancy spoke. “John don’t forget. It was a few weeks ago that she was running away, living on the streets, not trusting people. But your love and gentle nature has turned that around in a hurry. She has learned how to open her heart to let others in. She will have her trials and I am glad to hear that you understand that there will be more bad days to come. But both Beth and I will be here if you need us.”

John was looking outside at Faith. She had opened up her paint set and was now painting the faces of the orphans with snowflakes and icicles. She was even hugging them as they came up to her. Zechariah had another group formed around him, as he was no doubt regaling them with his wonderful story. The animal trainer of the reindeer had three children on top of the reindeer. The horse drawn carriage was coming back every half hour full and leaving full. He looked at all the orphans and realized that this would be one of their best memories for some time now. He then became determined that this would happen every year. He had to make sure of it.

Zechariah was regaling the kids about the Twelve Days of Christmas. “How many of you have heard of the song the 12 days of Christmas? Well there are actually Twelve Days of Christmas festival days. Unfortunately most people do not celebrate them in favor of more Americanized and secular traditions. However it is still an important tradition. We celebrate the birth of the Christ child and of all the wonderful events that surrounds that event. But let me explain the meaning to the popular song. For a period of about 300 years, Catholics were prohibited from practicing their faith either in public or private. As a result, there were a series of catechism songs that were written to teach the young the basics of the faith. It was a series of coded messages to give a memory aids to use for learning. And since it was a song and sounded like rhyming nonsense, the young and old alike could sing without fear. You know that every line start with my true love gave to me, that true love was in fact God’s love. The partridge in a pear tree is Christ Jesus upon the Cross. Two turtledoves refer to the Old and New Testaments. The three French hens stand for faith, hope and love, which of course are the three gifts of the Spirit that abide. The four calling birds refer to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, who were the four gospelers that sang the song of Salvation through Jesus Christ. The five golden rings represent the 5 books of the law: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Six geese a laying are the 6 days of creation. Seven Swans a swimming refers to the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord. The eight maids a milking reminded children of the 8 beatitudes listed in the Sermon on the Mount. Nine ladies dancing refer to love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control which are the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit. Ten lords a leaping represent the 10 Commandments. Eleven pipers piping refer to the 11 faithful apostles. Finally, the twelve drummers drumming are the 12 points of belief expressed in the Apostles Creed: belief in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, that Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary, made man, crucified, died and arose on the third day, that he sits at the right hand of the father and will come again, the resurrection of the dead and life everlasting. So the next time you sing the 12 Days of Christmas take the time to reflect on the lessons that are hidden within.” 

As the evening began to wind down John, Beth and Faith went for a drive around town. Most of the townspeople were still on a spiritual high, and they were sitting on their porches waving at the cars as they went by them. Faith loved looking at the houses but was a little sad that they would all be taken down soon. But she realized that soon it would be Easter, then the 4th of July then so on and so forth. So here sadness was soon replaced. She looked at the gentleman in the front driver seat and gave a little smile. She was definitely glad that he had chosen her and did not give up on her. She had not felt as warm and as loved in a long time.

Finally they arrived at the cemetery and all got out. Faith directed them to her mother’s gravesite. The flowers that were planted there were still alive and John promised Faith that he would ensure there were fresh flowers on the grave at all times.

“My mother had cancer. She had it ever since I was born. She couldn’t work and my dad wasn’t around so we had to make do with what we had. I guess now that she must have been in terrible pain, because she cried herself to sleep at night. But every morning she would be there with a smile a hug and a kiss. She made sure that I had food and clothes and that we were fairly comfortable. She did it mostly by her own means as you can tell. But I guess what I learned from her is that no matter how bad things were they could always be worse. She got up everyday to fight the good fight so to speak. She was beautiful. I know that the cancer took her hair and she had to fashion that hair into a wig. Also the cancer was destroying her body, but she was still beautiful. She made us beautiful dresses, and fashioned shoes out of whatever she could. And believe it or not I never starved. I am still unsure where she got everything but she did. I’m not even sure that I told her I loved her enough or thanked her enough.” Faith knelt towards the ground. “Mommy I will always love you and I hope that you are not mad that I am living with another dad. But he is a good person and he cares for me very much. There are some other people who come around every so often to look upon me so I will never be alone. I know that they could never love me they way that you did, but they will sure try. I know that I will never love them as much as I love you, but I can still love thanks to you. I will come and visit as often as I can Mommy I promise. But my new daddy is very good to me and I will come to love him too. I love you Mommy and I will never forget you.”

Both Beth and John were crying as Faith finished talking to her mother. John went down to pick her up and gave her a big hug and a kiss.  He took everybody over to his wife and daughter’s grave where they would all say a little prayer before leaving the cemetery. Beth took a look into John’s eyes as he was still in the midst of tears. He was in deep conversation with his wife and daughter and she could tell that it was a very important subject. Finally he lifted his head and stood up. As they all began to walk towards the car a blanket of fresh snow began to cover the cemetery as if it was washing away all of the hurt and remorse. Faith and John looked back at the graves then walk to the car so that they could go home. It was Faith’s best Christmas ever.