A Christmas Miracle

Christmas Eve and he worked late again. As he trod through drifts of pristine snow, he saw a bottle passed among homeless men. Two months mortgage he did owe; Fear of living on the street filled him with woe. Shops had closed early; except for Christmas lights his path was dark. He had no gifts for his wife Shirley and his children would wake to a tree so stark. He shivered in the roaring winds of winter’s bark. It was then he looked up and saw the light – a huge star shaped like a cross. The lower beam shone so bright that he followed it until a church he came across and the manger in front of it gave him pause. Nestled up next to Jesus in the crib bed was a golden retriever lying peacefully. Tied round the dog was a velvet sack scarlet red and he neared the manger ever so cautiously hoping he’d found the perfect gift for his family. He picked up the dog, but the untied sack grew, filled with gifts with name tags for all his clan. There was money in a card with his name on it too. A fearful soul might have turned and ran, but the card read, “Merry Christmas from the Savior of man.” *Entry for Francine's English Quintain Contest, written on November 30, 2011.