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Christmas is just around the corner and many people are
anxious to choose just the right gift for those that they love. Many people agonize over what to
give. We all want to give
something special and we want it to cause the eyes of those that we
love to light up with joy. We
want to give the very best gift of all!
As I considered this, I remembered a story, Christmas
Day In The Morning, which was written many years ago by Pearl S. Buck.
The story was about a teenaged boy whose father woke him early
each morning at 4:00 A.M. It
was milking time and he needed his son to come and help milk the
cows.
One day the boy overheard his father telling his mother
how much he hated to awaken his son so early, but he was unable to do
all the chores alone. Through
hearing this conversation, the boy came to understand how much his
father loved him although he had never verbalized that fact to the
boy. That morning the boy did
his work with unusual enthusiasm because he realized how much his
father loved him.
Christmas time was coming and the boy had gotten his
father a small gift at the store like he always did but this year he
just wished he could do more.
He thought and thought about some way he could show his father
how much he loved him—when an idea came to him. He decided that on Christmas Eve he
would do all of the milking by himself as a surprise gift to his
father. True to his
commitment, he managed to get himself up at 3:00 A.M. and he crept
down the stairs and out to the barn.
The boy had never done all of the milking by himself before
but he found a new energy and excitement in the task before him. He fed and milked all the cows by
himself until all of the empty milk cans were filled. Afterward, he quietly made his way
back into the house with just barely enough time to get back under
the covers before he knew his father would come in to wake him at
4:00 A.M. As usual, his father
came to the door and sadly announced that even though it was
Christmas that it was time to get up and do the milking. His father went on out to the barn
ahead of his son to get things started.
Of course, when his father got to the barn, he soon
found that his son had done all of the chores by himself and he was
overcome with joy at the great gift his son had given him. For the first time, his father was
able to enjoy watching all of his children come downstairs on
Christmas morning. On other
Christmas mornings, he had not made it back from the barn before the
children awakened. It was a
special gift that both father and son remembered all of their lives
and I don’t imagine either of them ever
questioned the unspoken bond of love between them.
The account of the boy and his father tells us that the
very best gift of all isn’t something that
is bought in a store. Like the
boy in the story, it takes an overpowering desire to let others know
that you love and care for them.
That kind of overpowering desire comes from the heart and was
demonstrated to us on the very first Christmas. It came straight from the heart of
God when He gave the world the very best gift of all!
“And the angel said unto
them,
Fear not: for, behold, I
bring you good tidings
of great
joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the
city of David
a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”
(Luke 2: 10-11)
By Pamela Perry Blaine
©December
7, 2006
Pamela lives
in Missouri with her husband, Michael. She enjoys writing,
music, and country living. She writes "Pam's
Corner" for her local newspaper and many stories have been
published on the internet as well as in several books such as The
Miracle Of Sons, 2The Heart/People Who Make A Difference, and
A Tribute To Moms. Her goal is to write to encourage others and
to write stories for her children and grandchildren so that
stories and family history will be preserved.
Pam
and Mike have made a CD of several songs she has written called,
"I'll Walk You Home". It
is available by freewill donation. More information as
well as a clip from the CD is on the website at: http://www.blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm
e-mail: pamyblaine@blaines.us
)
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(
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`·-»Pamy
"Security
is not the absence of danger,
but the
presence of God"
My Website:
http://www.blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm
e-mail: pamyblaine@blaines.us
"NO ONE
IS USELESS IN THIS WORLD
WHO
LIGHTENS THE BURDEN OF ANYONE ELSE"
http://www.greatcom.org/laws/englishkgp/default.htm
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