by Amy Newmark
And there’s the repetition. The same carols attempted every year. A quick route to a migraine is hearing the Fifth Grade Beginners Band pound out “Jingle… Bells… Jingle … Bells” in achingly precise 4/4 time.
When our children were little we stayed for the entire concert, even though our kids were in kindergarten and second grade. One year we realized we could skip out after our kids were done, but that was the year the music teachers grew diabolically clever and began interspersing grades, culminating in an all-school grand finale.
I’m all for music education in our schools, just like I’m all for people eating tofu. I just don’t want to experience it personally.
Christmas concerts are a way to reward faithful teachers who’ve labored for months trying to teach music fundamentals to children. Considering what they have to work with, they produce miracles each year. But, can’t I just send a dozen roses to the band room?
It got so bad I used to pray for a kid to misbehave, just to liven things up. But that proved to be a bad strategy that I abandoned after my second-born wrapped his shepherd’s costume around his face and acted like a mummy during the Virgin Mary’s solo. The girl who played Mary alternately smiled sweetly into the audience and glared at Alex, as he approached the manger, hands outstretched in a stiff-legged mummy shuffle.
My outlook might be different if I had a budding Pavarotti or Domingo in the family, but so far all I have is the Pips with no Gladys Knight.
We didn’t fully weigh the consequences when we decided to have four children. It looks like we’ll be sitting through at least 100 more school concerts. There’s just no way to avoid the second week of December. Bah humbug!
~Cindy Hval
A Divine Creature
Christmas is the season of joy, of holiday greetings exchanged, of gift-giving, and of families united.
~Norman Vincent Peale
The painted navy blue swallow, artistically perched on its ceramic nest, caught her eye. My sister Rosemary, being a country girl and no stranger to real diving swallows in her barns, had a passion for the “divine creatures,” as she called them.
“I really love it,” she said about my new piece of art.
“Thanks. I love it, too.”
My two-dollar yard-sale find looked perfect on my kitchen wall, and, although it held little significance, I did think it was a lovely bit of décor. Rosemary always admired it when she came over. I was tempted to give it to her, but it looked great on my kitchen wall.
When the holidays approached, I got busy finding gifts and crossing names off my list. I couldn’t stop thinking about how much Rosemary had loved that little bird. She was a single mom with six children and she didn’t have a lot of her own treasures.
I had to do it. I climbed up the stepstool and lifted the little ceramic piece off its nail. I found a box and wrote a note: “A true gift is something you really treasure yourself. . . Love you, big sister. And Merry Christmas!”
When Rosemary carefully peeled back the tissue on Christmas Day and saw the swallow, she was in awe. Then when she read the note, her eyes welled. We hugged and she promised she would care for “our swallow.” If I ever changed my mind she would give it back to me in a heartbeat. I assured her I would not change my mind.
The following Christmas, I opened a lovely square box and pulled back the tissue. The swallow was back! Rosemary’s note expressed her thankfulness for having the swallow on her wall for a year.
And so the tradition of the Christmas Swallow began. It has become the highlight of our gift exchange and our children and grandchildren look forward to the swallow exchange every year.
Now, when my year is up, I remove the swallow from my wall and smile. I know it doesn’t look nice but I leave the nail empty during the years when the swallow is hanging at Rosemary’s.
That empty nail reminds me of the importance of family and how giving from the heart is the best kind of gift. Our little bird has flown back and forth between our homes each Christmas for twenty-four years now. Rosemary and I are not getting any younger but each year when one of us opens “the box” we giggle like schoolgirls.
One year, Rosemary almost forgot to bring the swallow. She had to turn the car around and run inside to take it down and wrap it up. One year, I almost dropped it. But so far, so good. We haven’t missed a beat. Who would have guessed that a seemingly insignificant two-dollar treasure could bring so much Christmas joy year after year?
~Glynis M. Belec
California Christmas
I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month.
~Harlan Miller
I grew up in Southern California where we’re lucky if we don’t have a heat wave for Christmas. We may brag to our friends back East about spending the holidays at the beach or pool, but on Christmas Day, many of us yearn for a crackling fireplace and snowflakes drifting down from the sky. That’s why a few residents in my small Los Angeles suburb give our town a touch of winter magic every year.
Right before Christmas Eve, they drive a pickup truck into the mountains and pile it high with snow. On their return, they shovel the snow onto the sidewalk in the center of our little downtown and build a seven-foot snowman.
Our local Frosty has stick arms, a carrot nose and a large red muffler. After a hot day, he has sometimes melted enough that his lime buttons protrude on sticks a good inch or so in front of his shrunken belly. But he still stands, beaming a lopsided cranberry grin under the streetlamps.
Children pry chunks of snow from the base to build mini snowmen on a nearby wall and throw snowballs at each other and their parents. We all take pictures with our wintry visitor, sliding hands across the icy snow and laughing at how our fingers tingle with the cold.
I don’t know who those men are, but I am grateful. That single snowman is our White Christmas and Winter Wonderland. He is mittens and mufflers, snowflakes and icicles, red noses and numb toes all rolled into one. And like Christmas itself, we welcome him every year, whether we’re wearing rain boots or flip flops to pose beside him.
~Susan Lendroth
Santa Suit
All the world is happy when Santa Claus comes.
~Maud Lindsay
Something magic happens
When you don a Santa suit
You can argue against it
But the point is rather moot
You see, I have firsthand experience
With the phenomenon that happens
It’s an eye-opening experience
One of life’s biggest transformations
It all started the second
I walked out the door
On the inside, I didn’t feel
Any different than before
But all of a sudden
The world instantly changed
Like the molecules around me
Had been magically rearranged
People’s faces lit up
The second they saw me
It happened so quickly
It almost seemed eerie
Then my arm started waving
How? I don’t even know
And I was ever so startled
When I blurted, “Ho-Ho-Ho!”
The gait of my walk
Changed from a hurried pace
To a nice pleasant stroll
And I found a smile on my face
I started rubbing my pillowed tummy
And stroking my fake beard
I felt a presence well up inside me
The sensation was quite weird
It was the spirit of Santa
It was unlike anything on this earth
You can’t put a price upon it
Nothing carries such value or such worth
There is no Santa training necessary
The transformation is complete
The second a child’s face lights up
And the feeling can’t be beat
So if you don’t believe in ma
gic
All that’s necessary for you to do
Is don a Santa suit
And you can feel it too
The Spirit of Christmas
Will burst out of you like a beam
And you’ll be transported to another world
Like you’re living in a dream
At least once in their life
Everyone should put on the Santa gear
It’s an experience you won’t forget
And one you will always hold dear
~Eric Nanson
Meet Our Contributors
Teresa Ambord is a business writer and editor, working from her home in rural Northern California. What she loves best is writing family stories. Her posse of small dogs serves as her muses. They inspire her writing and decorate her life.
Mary Ellen Angelscribe is a pet columnist and author of Expect Miracles and A Christmas Filled with Miracles. Her swimming cats were featured on Animal Planet’s Must Love Cats. Her stories and cat videos can be seen on Facebook under Angel Scribe and Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales. Learn more at www.AngelScribe.com.
Mary Anglin-Coulter earned her Bachelor of Arts degree, with honors, in Arts from Bellarmine University in 2006. She is an artist, graphic designer, and freelance writer previously published in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, Small Town Living, and The OUTsiders Ally. She lives with her wife and three daughters in Kentucky.
Joe Atwater lives on a horse ranch in North Carolina with his wife Elizabeth. He tried his hand at writing after quite a bit of encouraging from her. Now they have something in common other than their love of horses and country living.
Katie Bangert lives in Texas with her husband, three children and many family pets. She has appeared in multiple Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Somewhere in between watching her kids at Taekwondo and paddling in her kayak, Katie finds inspiration to write in the most unlikely places. Contact her through katiebangert.com.
Glynis Belec, a freelance writer, inspirational speaker and children’s author, faces each day with hope and thanksgiving. Counting blessings is getting to be a daily addiction. Glynis loves capturing life in words and can’t wait for tomorrow so she can feel inspired all over again. E-mail her at [email protected].
Jennifer Berger currently resides in Queens, NY with her husband Aaron and their nine-year-old son Josh. A former editor and freelance writer who loves to read and write, Jennifer is now a stay-at-home wife, mother and full-time advocate for her child.
AimeeAnn Blythe retired from the transportation industry. She enjoys gardening and spending time with her three furry children. She is currently working on a book.
Michele Boom has taught elementary school both in the traditional setting as well as online. She has worked as a freelance writer for seven years and is a frequent contributor to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. She lives in Bend, OR with her family, two cats and an aquatic frog named Hopper.
A former newspaper reporter, Sally Breslin has been writing a weekly humor column titled “My Life” for five New England newspapers since 1994. She also has authored three novels: There’s a Tick in My Underwear! (about camping) and two thrillers. She enjoys hiking with her dogs. E-mail her at [email protected].
Sylvia Bright-Green has written over 1,600 manuscripts in her thirty-one years of writing since 1985 and has been published in ten books and anthologies.
John P. Buentello is the author of many published essays, short stories, nonfiction and poetry. He is currently at work on a mystery novel and can be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].
Jill Burns lives in the mountains of West Virginia with her wonderful family. She’s a retired piano teacher and performer. Jill enjoys writing, music, gardening, nature, and spending time with her grandchildren.
Eva Carter is happy to have contributed ten stories to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Having a background in the entertainment field as well as in the corporate environment, she is now very content to write, travel, take photographs and enjoy life with her husband and cat. E-mail her at [email protected].
Tracy Moeller Cary received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Michigan State University in 1965. She is a native of Saginaw, MI but has resided in Somerset, KY since 1979. She’s a wife, mother of three daughters, and grandmother to Katie and Kinser.
Brenda Cathcart-Kloke is a writer who lives in the suburbs of Denver, CO. She is a frequent contributor to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Besides being an avid Broncos fan, she enjoys reading, writing inspirational stories, and spending time with her family.
Stacie Chambers thanks freelance writer Sheri Zeck of Milan, IL for writing her story. Sheri’s work has appeared in numerous Chicken Soup for the Soul books, Guideposts, Angels on Earth, and Farm & Ranch Living. Sheri writes about her faith, family and adventures of raising three girls at www.sherizeck.com.
JoAnne Check graduated from Kutztown University and has been a teacher, grant writer, and copywriter. She is the author of six historical fiction books known as the Heritage Square Series. When she is not writing books, JoAnne enjoys art, travel, reading, gardening, and camping in the great outdoors.
Kim Childs is a Boston-area life and career coach specializing in Positive Psychology (aka The Science of Happiness), creativity and sacred living. She also publishes a blog, A Pilgrim on the Path, and teaches workshops on The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. Please visit her at www.KimChilds.com.
Traci Clayton received a bachelor’s degree in advertising from TCU and a master’s degree in advertising from The University of Texas at Austin. She now works in (surprise) advertising as a copywriter. She got her love of writing from her Mawmaw, Joan Clayton, who has been published in many Chicken Soup for the Soul books.
Tracy Crump enjoys telling stories and is a frequent contributor to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. She encourages others through her Write Life Workshops and webinars and edits a popular writers newsletter, The Write Life. Her most important job is Grandma to little Nellie. Visit Tracy at TracyCrump.com or WriteLifeWorkshops.com.
Steph Davenport is a nationally published writer and previous contributor to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Her stories about food, health, relationships and spirituality have appeared in magazines, collaborative works and newspapers. Steph enjoys life in the Midwest and is passionate about agriculture and creativity.
Michele Ivy Davis and her husband live in the San Diego area. Her stories and articles have appeared in many publications, and her young adult novel, Evangeline Brown and the Cadillac Motel (Penguin Group USA), received national and international awards. Learn more at MicheleIvyDavis.com.
John Dorroh taught high school science for thirty years. Currently he works part-time as an educational consultant, writes poetry, short fiction, and business and restaurant reviews. He travels and makes photo notecards for friends… and still writes old-fashioned letters.
Joanna Dylan grew up on a sailboat in California. Surrounded by nature she felt God’s presence. She currently calls Boston home, with her author husband Josh, and cat Boss. She enjoys hiking, writing, exploring and petting each animal that crosses her path. She is currently working on a faith-based romantic suspense novel.
Kristine Eckart graduated, with honors, from Columbia College Chicago in 2014. She enjoys reading several books at once and spending time with family and friends. She also ran the Chicago Marathon in 2013. Kristine currently writes for FabFitFun.com, and plans to continue expanding her repertoire in the writing field.
Greg Engle is a published award-winning sportswriter who spent twenty-three years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg holds a bachelor’s degree in Communications, a master’s degree in Psychology and is currently working on a Ph.D. in Psychology.
Kate Erickson lives in Fort Bragg, CA with her husband, playful Catahoula Leopard dog Lucy, and curmudgeon twelve-year-old cat Little Mister. She writes
a blog about the quirky aspects of life in a small town on the Mendocino Coast.
Shannon Erickson lives in a cabin on beautiful Kentucky Lake. She enjoys hiking the numerous trails in her area, spending summer afternoons on her boat, collecting primitive antiques and traveling. This is her third published article.
Cinda Findlan earned her Doctorate of Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2006. She recently retired from her university position to enjoy time with her husband and her two granddaughters. Cinda enjoys acrylic painting and plans to take up writing as her next vocation.
Gloria Hudson Fortner received a bachelor’s degree from David Lipscomb College and a master’s degree from Nova Southeastern University and earned a National Board for Professional Teaching certification. Her writing has appeared in various educational journals. After thirty years in the classroom, she now spends her time enjoying her family.
Rus Franklin was born in the West, raised in the South, grew up in the jungle and lives in the Arizona desert. Following military service and between several careers, he earned both B.S. and MSL degrees. Rus finally realized his dream of publication as part of the Chicken Soup for the Soul family of authors.
Dusty Grein is a bestselling author, award-winning poet, part-time graphics designer and full-time father/grandfather. He currently resides in Oregon, where he is busy being raised by his youngest daughter, working on his newest novel and trying to avoid becoming trapped in the Facebook authors’ groups he moderates.
Chelsea Hall is a world traveler, animal lover, tennis player and professional editor. She graduated from Oregon State University in 2010. She currently resides in Tucson, AZ with her baby girl and husband.
Norma Heffron is a retired teacher who moved to the mountains of western North Carolina, which she refers to as God’s Country, soon after her husband retired from Disney in Florida. This year they celebrate fifty years of marriage and have added three great-grandchildren to their family.