Love, Peace & Joy: 3 Short Stories

by Stephany Tullis

  "Holly, it's hot in here. Do you mind if I lower the thermostat?"

  "No, sweetie, I'm hot too! A lot of people, huh? The candles and the oven make it even warmer, you think? Try lowering it to 65, hun. Thanks."

  Holly tapped her eyes, carefully, this time aware of her eye make up, and nodded her head in time to Monica Elf’s frolicsome wink and the beat of the Jackson Five's rendition of Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

  Marguerita Elf grabbed Holly's hand and with a light tug invited her to join the singing Elves. Monica solidified her BFF's honorary Elf status by plopping a white fur hat on Holly's head fiddling with her friend's up-doo for the perfect fit.

  Recognizing a Kodak moment when she saw one, Holly looked for Chad hoping he could snap a picture of the three Elves. Her mother shrugged her shoulders as though to say, “I don't know.” Chad's step-dad stepped to the plate, videotaping the Elves, the sing-a-long and all of the guests.

  As the three Elves spun around in beat, laughing and dancing with each other, the music stopped. Perplexed, Holly looked to her fellow Elves questioning the next steps in the planned entertainment.

  Her partners deserted her in the middle of the dance floor.

  "Hey, Monica, what do you want us to do? What's the next song? Can we sing it without the CD?"

  "I'll take care of it Holly, I've got this!"

  I don't want a lot for Christmas,

  There's just one thing that I need.

  I don't care about the presents

  Underneath the Christmas tree

  Holly stood, still not quite certain as to her next move but not timid at all, she joined Trey Songz in his rendition mimicking Monica Elf's direction to the carolers. Everyone joined in, loving this version of the old song snapping their fingers and tapping their feet in time to the beat. Just as the carolers began the second verse, they were overpowered by Chad's deep tenor as he rejoined the festivities followed by Holly's partner Elves; each carrying a tall white candle; the flames flickered as they walked in time to the beat. The procession continued: her mother and father, Chad's mother and father, arm in arm with Chad's grandmother. At this point, Chad was a solo performer.

  Make my wish come true

  Baby all I want for Christmas is you

  All I want for Christmas is you, baby

  Chad dropped to one knee; his grandmother handed him a gold toned box:

  "Holly Jean, will you marry me? I love you. I'll always love you. All I want for this and every other Christmas is you."

  Chad opened the box and slipped the antique diamond ruby ring on Holly's finger.

  "All I want for Christmas, Chad, is you."

  CHOCOLATE COVERED KISSES

  Maddy fumbled as she double tapped the button on the bedside alarm clock. She peeked at her husband and was glad to see he slept through the opening notes of “Joy to the World.” She lay stiff as a board on her side of the bed thinking it would take more than a few musical chords about Christmas joy to enliven her soul on this bleak wintry Sunday morning.

  Unable to rebuke temptation, she tugged the blanket up to her chin semi complacent with the thought of lounging in bed all day, ignoring the whispering tinges of guilt. Get up! You know you need to go to church.

  Maddy's Sunday morning routine was just that--routine. Nelson, her husband of twenty-five years, buried his head under his pillow at six AM, thirty minutes before the scheduled alarm and usual brief gospel interlude. Gospel host Judson Johnson had just enough time to bless the Meriweather household with five words of prayer or a few bars of an inspirational tune before Maddy silenced Mr. Johnson in his spiritual tracks.

  Nelson appreciated his wife's efforts each week to let him sleep as she prepared for church. His job demanded an early rise. He had to be on the construction site and ahead of his team six days a week. Sunday was his only day to sleep in. This morning, despite his body's demanding call for rest, he realized his wife was still in bed. By now, she would be in the shower. Sometimes he was able to fall back asleep to the rhythm of water that melodiously accompanied his wife's deep contralto as she hummed one of her favorite hymns. This morning's aberrant silence unnerved him.

  “What’s wrong Maddy? Are you feeling okay?”

  Without movement she muttered, “I’m fine honey. I just don’t feel like facing the cold weather. Go on back to sleep. Sorry about the alarm."

  He turned over to face her and was shocked! She lay staring at the ceiling and so close to the outer edge of the bed that if he rolled over, she might easily fall to the floor.

  “Maddy! Come on now. Cold weather never stopped you from going to church before. So what’s bothering you, baby?" His deep-throated whispered concern nudged her conscience.

  Rather than continue to disrupt her husband’s sleep, she murmured, "Get some sleep Nels." She sweetened her response with a kiss. "I'm okay."

  Officially rebuking temptation, she began her usual Sunday morning rituals. She tip toed to the bathroom, dressed in their spare bedroom and by the time she returned to say good bye, Nelson was fully submerged under their heavy comforter--now with both pillows over his head.

  She whispered not wanting to wake him, "I'll see you after church."

  He grunted a muffled response, "See you later, honey. Hope you feel better. Take some of those cold tablets."

  ***********

  Thankful she made the trip to church, the service was as special as she hoped. More than fifty crimson poinsettias lined the hallway leading to the sanctuary, huge boughs of evergreen sprinkled with gold sparkles and swathed in multi-shade crimson ribbon draped the pews on each side of the center aisle. The sweet pine fragrance permeated the entire church mystically lifting her spirit as she was ushered to her favorite seat. The triumphant Voices of Angels Christmas Ensemble and red, green, yellow and blue abstract designed stained glass windows in the sanctuary provided the peace she sought. As easy as the peace encompassed her spirit during church service, it inextricably dissipated by the time she crossed the church parking lot to her car...her soul depleted and empty. Again.

  About two inches of snow had fallen and she dreaded the long ride home, chiding herself for even making the long trip. Getting up at six to make it to church by eight thirty had been a struggle for her today. It seemed with each passing day, everything was a struggle. She felt like a defeated soldier who expected his battalian to lose yet another battle.

  Maddy stomped her feet, one by one, shaking off the freshly fallen snow not wanting it to melt onto the floor mats of her already warm car. She was thankful for the remote starter the car salesman recommended last year when she bought her new to her but slightly used Buick LaCrosse. Once settled in, she removed her winter white turtle fur hat and matching cashmere gloves. As she loosened the scarf around her neck, she twisted the rear view mirror from habit. Maddy groaned at the image staring back at her. Despite her meticulously applied eyeliner, Maddy's hazel eyes drooped with weariness. The remaining smudge of Holiday Rouge lipstick showcased the apathy of her soul failing to deliver the Christmas joy promised by the TV ads promoting the celebratory shade.

  She readjusted the mirror combing her fingers through her shoulder length natural wavy cocoa brown hair as though reminding herself of the biblical based scripture that was so often mis-quoted: “A woman's hair is her crown of glory.” Her eyes crinkled at her frivolous thought. She warmed to the heat blasting from the car vents and adjusted the gages. Fearing that she might nod off, she decided to stop for coffee before heading to the highway.

  **********

  Glad she stopped at He-Brews Coffee Shop, Maddy sipped her steaming cafe latte eager to get home and finish dinner. The pound cake she bought after church to support the Women's Ministry would be the perfect finishing touch to her Sunday meal. Nelson wasn't satisfied with Sunday dinner unless it included dessert.

  "Neither am I." She thought out loud.

  Maddy frowned as she realized, she hadn't thought at all about Christmas dinner. This was the first yea
r that she and Nelson would celebrate Christmas alone. Deciding on a Christmas menu was the last thing on her mind.

  With the children grown and gone, it was never a surprise when at least one of them called; like clockwork--two weeks after Thanksgiving to report their special plans. Plans that did not include another trip home.

  Her eldest son, Lionel, true to schedule, called to say he and the family wouldn't be able to make it for Christmas this year because they had promised the kids a ski trip to Colorado.

  Then Isabel, her youngest daughter, texted her a few days later: “Vry sorry, mom, ‘cause I know you love Xmas.” Apparently her college roommate's family invited her to Switzerland for an all-expenses paid holiday.

  The clincher was the call she got from JoJo, her youngest sister, this week. Her mother-in-law was sick and her husband, Jackson, insisted they spend Christmas with his mother. With that last call, Maddy's spirits sunk even lower, if that was at all possible. If asked and if she dared admit, Maddy's spirit thermometer registered below zero.

  Traditionally, Maddy and Nelson bought their tree a few days before Thanksgiving and trimmed it the Friday after Thanksgiving. The kids and their friends home for the holidays, her friends from church, and a few of Nelson's friends from the job would share Thanksgiving pot luck, bring out the Christmas music, board games as well as the electronic ones, for an afternoon of good food and fun. The women would compare plans for the upcoming Christmas holidays to ensure that nobody's Christmas party was scheduled on the same day as someone else's.

  This year, there was no tree. Maddy's Christmas decorations remained untouched stowed away in the attic. Her holiday music was nowhere to be found--not that she looked for it. It, too, was shoved away on a back shelf; something that would have never happened years before when she meticulously boxed and wrapped each hand crafted ornament in specialty designed boxes.

  Maddy was glad to see she was almost home. She'd driven through the center of town without noticing the elegant Christmas fixtures bordering the road. On her route, there were three churches, a huge Catholic Church, St. Catherine's; a magnificent Baptist Church, Mt. Zion; and a beautiful architectural wonder, the local nondenominational church, Christians for Christ. As per the holiday season, each had its welcoming words of hope and impassioned greetings to 'Join us' Christmas Eve for candlelight service. And then, there was the regal white house with the long wraparound porch. Every year, she anxiously watched for the owners to replace voluptuous summer and fall bouquets with overflowing urns of pinecones, ornaments and lights saluted by matching ten foot tall nutcrackers guarding the front door.

  Warmed by the coffee and excited to only have a few miles to go, her eyes, like a wide lens camera, embraced the panoramic view of her holiday surroundings. Afraid to lose sight of the road, she narrowed her view and noticed for the first time the glistening snowflakes drifting across her windshield. Like a child waking up to her first snow of the season, Maddy rolled down her side window and poked out her arm-palm up-- thrilled by the feel of the ice cold snowflakes melting quicker than cold butter in a hot skillet.

  Accustomed to the mechanics of winter driving, she tapped her brakes to slow her speed not sure if there was ice underneath the cashmere snow blanket. Once assured that there was no ice buildup, she repeated her high-spirited prank. She laughed aloud; the freshly falling snow triggered one of her favorite Christmas memories.

  Christmas that year came at the end of a three day blizzard and Mother teased them all week that Santa probably wouldn't be able make it down the chimney. When Mother mysteriously disappeared each night that week, the same time and in the same place, the upstairs extra bedroom, door closed, as she sang “I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” the girls continued watching TV smiling at each other knowing that Santa was definitely coming to town.

  She was about eleven and the first of her sisters to open her biggest box. The sisters each had one BIG box. Each thought the other's was bigger. In actuality they were the same size. Mother assured that but she wrapped them so elegantly and differently that in their excitement, they each were convinced theirs was the biggest; and if not the biggest, certainly the prettiest.

  White figure skates; the shiny silver single blades looked as though they'd cut deeply into the ice on the community pond but there was no danger of that after blizzard conditions. It was a great Christmas, one of the best in her Christmas storehouse of memories. She remembered her mother chuckling at the six of them--she also had three brothers, "I believe Santa needs some help! That 'ole man has gone crazy; two pairs of figure skates, two pairs of hockey skates and two toboggans!"

  Maddy hummed her childhood Christmas song, “Santa Claus is coming to Town,” glad to be almost home. She slowed to make the left turn onto her street and waved to Mr. Nicholson, her neighbor who was walking his dog, Maxim. Some neighbors joked they could synchronize their watches based on Mr. Nicholson's dog walking schedule. Today, instead of his familiar wave (two fingers with a tip of his hat) he beckoned her to pull over. She hoped everything was all right...Mr. Nicholson was the community's honorary Godfather. Not one at all for conversation, Mr. Nicholson's greeting made you feel as though you'd been blessed by a reigning archbishop.

  Checking her rearview mirror to ensure that she could stop without getting rear-ended, she turned on her flashers before pulling into her neighbor's driveway. Before she could make a move, Mr. Nicholson lifted his hand much like a policeman when halting traffic. He pivoted and entered his front door leaving it open. Maxim sat back on his haunches understanding his master's nonverbal command tilting his head at Maddy directing her, “Just wait!”

  Not knowing what else to do, she sat in her car questioning the wisdom of her decision. Nelson would be worried about her. Now that she was so close to home, she wanted to finish up dinner so the two of them could relax and enjoy their Sunday meal together. Nelson's weekly schedule was so unpredictable and he worked such long hours that most nights, she left his dinner in the microwave usually joining him in their TV room with a cup of tea as he ate and watched the evening news.

  The console clock confirmed she was running about an hour later than usual. Pulling out her cell phone, she saw she'd already missed a call from her husband. She texted: “Almost home. Pls turn on the oven--350. Thx.”

  Startled, Maddy flinched as Mr. Nicholson tapped on her rearview window motioning her to open her trunk. Responding like she was Mr. Nicholson's personal puppet, she popped the trunk and eased back to the rear of her car holding onto the side so that she didn't lose her balance on the slippery driveway.

  Two of the brightest blue eyes peered out at her from a tiny red and silver crate. As though too frightened to make a sound, the tiny chocolate brown lab shivered albeit encompassed in a soft absinthe green blanket. The puppy's bright red beaded collar glistened, obviously new. Maddy stared at the puppy then back at her neighbor.

  Before she could speak, Mr. Nicholson's eyebrows raised questioning her acceptance. As though mute, she nodded yes.

  Mr. Nicholson placed Prancer in the car. She later learned the name of her new pet and quite unexpected gift when she read the gift card: “Happy Holidays. Meet Prancer.”

  The neighborhood Godfather mouthed Merry Christmas and waved his two fingers in time to Maxim's bark and flopping tail.

  Before she could utter thank you, Mr. Nicholson re-entered his house and flicked the switch turning on his outdoor Christmas lights. His front door closed in silent good-bye just as it had opened in silent greeting.

  "Oh my Lord," she mumbled. "What am I going to do with a puppy? But he's so cute!"

  As she backed out of the driveway and headed home, she could hear Prancer's whimpers.

  My God. What is Nelson going to say?

  Before she could think more about what her husband might say, she turned quickly into her driveway; skidding slightly at her last minute maneuver. She would have continued down the road if she hadn’t heard Nelson’s yell and glimpsed his gangling outstretche
d arms out of the corner of her eye.

  He was dressed in his Sea Hawks sweat suit and matching beanie grinning at her from the fully decorated front porch. A huge wreath with a sparkling gold bow and flowing ribbons decorated the door. The wreath's assorted multi colored bulbs flickered transmitting welcome home winks to the lady of the house. A nativity scene graced the front lawn; something she’d always wanted but never purchased; instead decorating each year with her age-old tradition of ‘kiddy’ themes. The nativity included all the elements including the three Wisemen, animals and scatterings of straw around the front of the manger where Mary and Joseph stood protecting their new born babe.

  Before she could grab her Bible and purse, Nelson opened the car door, "C'mere, Mrs. Meriweather. I'd begun to worry about you. Dinner's done, the tree is up and your Christmas carols await you!"

  "Nelson, how did you get all this done? The nativity is beautiful! But where?"

  Nelson chuckled. "Wellllllll….Santa was in the neighborhood; checking to see who was naughty or nice. We had a great chat! Ho! Ho! Ho! And guess what else we found? This old forty-five, "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus." I've been playing it all afternoon."

  Maddy froze unable to move wanting to relish the pulsating joy emanating from the center of her being to the extremities of her body! Her toes and fingers tingled as though frost bitten.

  “C'mon baby, it's cold outside[DT8] .” Nelson crooned. “Wait, what's that noise? Sounds like something's wrong with the car...it's coming from the trunk."

  “Take a peak! Merry Christmas to us, Nelson. Boy, do I love you!”

  JOYEAUX NOELLE

  "Good morning Ms. Noelle's sister."

  Teeny Tiny Tisha slid into her much too big desk chair hitting her head against the back of the seat in her haste to be on time for tryouts. Her toothy grin shared her latest big girl pronouncement: a humongous gap, front and center. A crisp fresh from the bank five dollar bill was buried under her pillow when she woke this morning and she was as happy as a butterfly freeing itself from its four week nap.