A Christmas To Remember

It was Christmas Eve in our tiny northern village.  The year was 1957.  My family and I were fast asleep in our beds when something awakened me, I know not what.  I crept quietly from the bed that I shared with my older sister, and tiptoed into the kitchen where I was drawn to the warmth emanating from the woodstove that heated our home in the winter.  The coals shone brightly through the grate in the front of the stove, causing the tinsel on our Christmas tree to shimmer and dance in the light.  There it stood, this magnificent evergreen tree; the one that Dad and my brothers had dragged into our house the day before, with Mom exclaiming, "Edward, that tree is too big for this house".  The branches were laden with glittering strands of silver tinsel that caught the reflection of light from the stove and the shining eyes of this little girl, as I looked in wonder at the gifts that had been placed beneath and around the base of the tree.  I'll never forget the incredible joy that I felt when I bent down and spied a large, unwrapped cardboard box sitting front and centre.  Nestled in the tissue paper was a pair of brand new, white figure skates with shiny blades and bright, white laces.  They were beautiful!  I don't remember looking for a name tag, but still I knew they were mine. 

The quiet stillness of the house, the enveloping warmth from the stove, the sweet pine fragrance of the freshly cut evergreen tree, the dancing tinsel shimmering on the tree, and a little girl's joy early one Christmas morning - all captured in one never forgotten moment in time.

Over the years, I've grown to realize that the greatest gift I received early that morning had nothing to do with the presents under our tree.  The true gift bestowed upon me was knowing and feeling the true essence of Christmas at that very moment -  that would live with me forever - buried deep within my heart, taken out at will, rejoiced in, exclaimed over, and enjoyed over and over again. 

What woke me that night long ago?  Was it a crackling ember from the woodstove, or the wind in the trees outside my bedroom window?  Perhaps an angel came to call to light a spark in a little girl's heart and gifted her a life long legacy - the true spirit of Christmas.  Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad!  Merry Christmas, Phil!