Holiday Cheer - My Christmas Miracle

By: Callie Hutton 

When I was a young girl of about twelve, my grandmother died on Thanksgiving Day. It was a sad time for my family, as you can well imagine. But even sadder was the following Christmas.

My mother’s older sister, my Aunt Rita, was unmarried and had lived her entire life with my grandmother. To say she took the death hard is a major understatement. In fact, the woman lost her hearing for a couple of weeks after the funeral.

Knowing this would be a very hard time for her sister, my mother sent me to her house to help her decorate her Christmas tree. It was two days before Christmas, and apparently my aunt had no interest in the holiday, so I was to cheer her up.

It was a hard afternoon. She cried and told me many stories of my grandmother that I hadn’t heard. But we continued to decorate the tree, and display her treasured crèche she’d had for years. By the time we finished, I was as sad as she. I missed my grandma, and her generous lap she used to sit me on, and the cookies she would sneak me.

After dinner I headed home. It was necessary to take two buses to get back to my house. I took one to a central bus station, and switched buses there to take the one that would drop me near my house.

By the time I arrived at the central bus station, it had grown dark and very cold. As I waited for my bus, I reached into my pocket for my next fare, and it was gone. No money. I rummaged through all my pockets—didn’t carry a purse in those days. Frantic, I searched the ground under me, and followed the path I’d taken from the first bus. Nothing.

People hustled in and out of the bus station. I went inside, got into line and approached the clerk behind the counter. I told him my story, he brushed me off. I guess a stranded little girl two days before Christmas meant nothing to him.

I wandered back outside and watched two of the buses I needed to catch pull in and pull out. Another bus pulled up right in front of me, and the passengers alighted. The last woman off brought tears to my eyes. She looked so much like my grandmother. Oh, I knew it wasn’t her, but she had the same build, the same way of walking, same hairstyle, same sparkling blue eyes. She came to sit beside me on the bench, and smiled at me.

That was all the encouragement I needed. I told her my tale of woe. She immediately pulled a coin purse from her pocket and gave me the needed fare. Then we spent time waiting for my bus, talking about Christmas. She told me I reminded her of her granddaughter who lived far away. I told her about my grandma.

Just as the bus pulled up, she patted my hand and told me my grandma would always be with me, because she was in my heart, and I shouldn’t be sad. I gave her a hug, and broke into goose bumps. She smelled exactly like grandma.

After settling into my seat, I pushed my hands into my pocket, and touched my bus fare. Stunned, I pulled out the coins I’d searched all over for. I swiped the moisture from the bus window to show my new friend I’d found my money. She was gone.

Although I continued to miss my grandmother, after that day I never felt sad. I know she’s always with me. Don’t you think so? 

Note: As some of you know, many of the stories I write for blogs are made up, usually for comedic purposes. This is a true story. 

Callie has been making up stories since elementary school, and writing gave her a way to turn off the voices in her head.  She’s had a number of articles and interviews published over the years, and finally decided to put her writing skills to the test and write novels.

            Oklahoma is where she hangs her hat with her husband of thirty-six years, two young adult children, and three dogs.

You can catch her hanging out at Facebook, Twitter- @CallieHutton, and her home base, www.calliehutton.com. Stop by sometime and say hello.

 

 

 

Blurb for Miss Merry’s Christmas: 

England, 1817.  David Worthington, Duke of Penrose dislikes Miss Meredith Chambers, the American governess who accompanied his new wards. He especially detests his attraction to the insufferable woman, and is anxious for her replacement to arrive.  

Merry is thrilled when the Dowager Duchess Penrose hires her as a companion. Now she can stay with her beloved charges. But can she ignore how her heart thumps when the pompous duke gets close?  

Two people determined to ignore each other, despite the pull between them, and the sparks that fly whenever they're together. 

Buy link:  http://amzn.to/TSKlw1

 

I will give a free download of my 2011 Christmas novella, A Wife by Christmas, to one commenter.

 

CHRISTMAS CRACK

• Boil 1 cup of butter with 1 cup brown sugar, about 3-5 minutes until it pulls from the sides.
• Line a cookie sheet with foil and spray it with pam. Line the sheet with 1 sleeve of saltines. 
• Pour the butter/sugar mix on top and bake in a 375° oven for 7 minutes.  Take it out and put 12 oz. bag of Chocolate chips on top and return to oven (oven off) just to melt.
• Spread the melted chips with a knife. Cool, then put it in the fridge for 3 hours to set. Then crack it up with your hands.
• DELISH and very addicting

Callie Huttonwww.calliehutton.com  Where Love Makes You Strong
Follow me on Twitter: @calliehutton
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