Christmas Miracles

I should really title this post A Really Cool Thing That Happened At Christmas, but it just doesn’t have the same zip. This actually happened to me last year so, I reiterate, clearly not a miracle–or at least not one I felt compelled to proclaim from a snowy roof top. (In my case just a roof top, maybe with a couple of leaves.)

I tore off the burgundy fabric I had around the tree.� Its deafening 1990s cries were driving me bonkers; I felt Ricky Martin was going to jump out from behind the tree at any moment and start singing Living La Vida Loca.� Besides, we normally place the tree between two very large picture windows and, in the past, the fabric helped give the tree some much needed girth in that large area.� Now that we’ve moved it next to the fireplace, there is no need to make it appear bigger.� (<—Not the really cool thing that happened on Christmas but, in regards to the fabric, certainly a good thing.)

My mantel is looking better.� I found the garland on the mantel at Michael’s for 70% off, so if you are in the market for some plastic greenery at a discounted price, hop in your sled and mush your way over to your nearest strip mall. (<—Also not the really cool thing that happened one Christmas.)

I think removing the fabric and adding the garland highlights the Christmas angel I have on the mantel, which is where I have the Christ candle.� (<—256 words later, she reaches the point of this post.)� For those who don’t know, the Christ candle is always white, usually in the center of the Advent wreath, and lit on Christmas day.� Last year I was on a mission to find the perfect Christ candle.� My wreath, unfortunately, wasn’t large enough to house in its center any of the candles I found.� So, figuring an all forgiving God wouldn’t mind, I decided I would find a special candle holder (on a $20 budget) and burn the candle on Christmas alongside the wreath.

Seven stores later (you’d be surprised how hard it is to find religious items during Christmas), I found the angel at a Christian bookstore.� This angel is not anything I would normally be drawn to, but I thought she was just beautiful.� I still do.� She’s about 12 inches tall, carved from wood, and weighs a ton.� I picked her up, looking for a price.� $50.� More than double my $20 budget.

I had been to every single store in and around town, so I knew I was going to have to find something at the store I was at or forget the Christ candle.� I wasn’t about to do that, so I asked the woman behind the counter if she had anything that would work.� She said she had the perfect thing, and for the next few minutes I followed her all around the store.

Nothing.� Whatever the perfect thing was, she couldn’t find it.

She decided to look in the back one last time so we walked towards the register, past the angel I admired earlier.� Wouldn’t you know it?� The $50 angel was what the store employee had been searching for the entire time.

“OH!� Here she is!� This is what I was talking about.� I think she would be perfect for a Christ candle!”

I agreed, but in the spirit of Christmas, I was also honest.� “I know, I saw this earlier and it is perfect, but it costs more than I budgeted to pay.”� {blushing}� I thanked her for her time, and told her I would keep looking.

The shop owner turned the angel over, looked at the price and said, “Well, I can sell it to you for $20.� Is that closer to what your budget allows?� I think she is perfect for you.”

I said, yes, I think that would fit my budget nicely.

And that is the story of my Christmas angel.� Certainly not a miracle, but definitely a really cool thing to happen at Christmas.� I wish for you and your families the same; that your holidays, no matter what or how you celebrate, be filled with the peace, love, and, if not miracles, more than a few really cool things.