I wrote this several years ago, but thought of it today...and thought I would post it again.
In the midst of a most trying year....I wish you a most blessed Christmas....
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As dogs go, he wasn't much of one. Part Newfoundland Hound, part
Springer Spaniel, and all ugly. And, sadly, by any standard, he wasn't
smart, but he had a smile that the little boy loved. For as long as the
boy could remember...nine years to be exact...the two had been
inseparable. The dog adored the boy, the boy loved the dog and, until
this Christmas, life had been good for both of then.
When the boy's father was drinking, which was often, he had a tendency
to become a theologian of sorts. He had a particular fondness for the
prophets of the Old Testament and two hours after his birth, as his
father was toasting the happy occasion for the sixth time, he decided on
a name. On the birth certificate, the boy's name was listed as Amos
Ezekiel, but since his mother did not have quite the same regard for the
prophets as his father, everyone called him Bud.
Standing outside the flower shop window, the dog watched the boy as he
admired the roses through the glass. With his hand on the shaggy, black
head, Bud pictured himself walking to his mother's bed and laying the
flowers in her hand. He only needed two...maybe three. It would make
her Christmas so special and yet, the price was so much more than the
few quarters jingling in his pocket.
There had been a time when he simply would have asked his mother for the
money and she would have given it to him without much of a thought.
That was before his father had left, and it was before the cost of
medication and treatment for his mother had swallowed what little money
they had. So, it was the dog, the boy, and his mother....and he had
overheard the doctor tell his mother that this would likely be her last
Christmas.
Running his hand through the dog's thick coat, Bud tried to envision
life without his mother. The thought brought tears to his eyes, but he
had to stay strong, for he was the man of the family now. His mother
had told him that many times, and he tried to be brave, but Christmas
without his mother....well, he just couldn't imagine it. If this proved
to be her last Christmas, he wanted to make it a good one. The flowers
would help, for his mother loved roses, but they were a luxury, and one
thing they couldn't afford this year was luxury.
Using his coat sleeve to wipe the tears welling in his eyes, Bud took
one more look at the flowers, and slowly walked on with the gray muzzled
dog a step behind. He glanced back, and the dog was looking at him
with his tongue hanging out, displaying his typical lopsided grin. The
grin usually brought a warm feeling to Bud, but on this day before
Christmas, even his dog's grin could not stop the cold fear growing in
him.
The boy and the dog walked to the end of the block, crossed the road,
and sat on the bench facing the Cathedral garden. It was a small but
beautiful garden, and a place where Bud would often come when he needed
time alone. The dog sat with his head on the boy's lap, as the boy
gently rubbed the graying nose. His eyes followed families rushing to
finish their Christmas shopping, and people entering the Cathedral to
prepare for the evening service. But in his mind, he saw the roses in
his mother's hand....only two or three....and they would make his mother
so happy, for she loved roses.
A woman plopped down on the bench next to him. She was the choir
director from the Cathedral and Bud could tell that she was angry. "Two
months," she mumbled, partly to herself and partly to the boy. "We've
worked on it for two months, and they still can't get it right...it will
be a disaster! The tenors are tone deaf, the altos can't count, and
the soloist is working up a great case of laryngitis. This is the last
year I'll ever do this."
"I'm sorry," said the boy, for he knew nothing about choirs and really
didn't know what else to say. "I'm sure it will go well."
"There's no possible was that it's going to go well!" the lady almost
shouted. "Christmas will be ruined and I'll never be able to show my
face in that church again." With a sigh, she lifted herself from the
bench and started back toward the building. As an afterthought, she
turned to the boy and said, "Have a good Christmas, young man."
Bud forced a weak smile and watched her walk away, but in his mind he
saw his mother, and pictured himself handing her the roses....only two
or three...and they would make her so very happy, for she loved roses.
"It's going to be the worst sermon I've ever preached!" the larger of
the two approaching men shouted in a loud baritone voice. He was
addressing the chairman of the deacon's board and the two had stopped at
the street corner next to the garden bench. "I just haven't had time
to work on it, and it reads like a bad novel. It'll be a catastrophe!
Maybe I need a vacation."
"I'm sure it will be just fine, pastor," came the reply. "What really
worries me is the music. Have you heard that choir? And even worse,
Viola misses half the notes when she sings, 'What Child is This?' She used to have such a wonderful voice, but she should have stopped singing years ago."
For the first time, they noticed Bud. "Smile, my boy, it's Christmas
Eve!" boomed the pastor. "Why are you sitting here with that glum
look? You should be home with your family."
"I'm a little sad," said the boy as he looked away from the men and down
at his dog, "My mother's not feeling well," was all he could say.
"Why don't you and your mom come to our Christmas Eve service tonight?" offered the deacon. "It might cheer you up."
"Splendid idea," said the pastor, as he reached into his coat pocket for
a flyer. "All the information is on here," he said as handed the paper
to Bud. "Now, I really must get to work on my sermon."
"And I need to pick up a few things before the stores close," added the deacon as they hurried away in opposite directions.
The flyer slipped from the boy's listless fingers and settled in the
snow. He barely felt the dog lick his chin. In his mind, he saw his
mother, and pictured himself handing her the roses...only two or
three...and they would make her so happy....for she loved roses.
Two women walked from the church and crossed the road. "The tree
started to die a week ago. There will only be brown needles left by
tonight," one whispered to the other, as they waited at the corner.
"And have you ever seen such pathetic looking wreaths?"
"I told you they started decorating too early," came the reply. "The
whole thing was poorly planned from the beginning. Well, I'm tired of
telling them. Just let them be embarrassed tonight. We'll be a
laughingstock, but maybe they'll do it right next year. If I wasn't so
busy, I'd do it myself!"
A whine from the dog, drew their attention to the boy. Bud was
absentmindedly scratching behind the dog's ear, and the dog loved it.
He whined again, completely content with life.
"What a cute dog," the lady lied. "But shouldn't you be home getting
ready to open your presents? All you kids seem to think about these
days is what you'll get for Christmas. You've lost sight of what the
season is all about."
Bud sat quietly, staring at his hands. He hadn't even thought of what
he might get, but he did know that it wouldn't be much. Before he could
say anything, the woman was digging through her purse. "Here," she
said, handing him a tract she had pulled from the bag. "This explains
what Christmas really means."
"Thanks," was all the boy had a chance to say before the women hurried
across the road. Bud read the title, "Putting Christ Back Into
Christmas," but he couldn't get much further. He just didn't feel like
reading. The tract soon found a place next to the flyer. In his mind,
he saw his mother, and pictured himself handing her the roses...only two
or three...and they would make her so happy, for she loved roses.
A man in an expensive suit hurried across the road and collapsed on the
end of the bench. "Two months," he almost shouted at the startled boy.
"For two months we've been shopping...we have dolls, doll houses, doll
dresses, and doll cars....we have board games, computer games, a play station, and clothes....we can barely walk through our bedroom. And this
afternoon, the brat decides she wants a puppy for Christmas. A puppy!
My wife chases me out of the house and tells me not to come back without
a puppy. Why am I telling you this? You're just a kid and all you
kids are just alike....spoiled rotten and always after something for
nothing."
Bud looked at the grinning dog on the ground next to him. An
uncomfortable thought was inching its way into his mind, and it kept
advancing, regardless of how hard he tried to push it back. He stared
at the stupid, lopsided smile, but all he saw were the roses...the roses
in his mother's hand. Oh, how his mother loved roses, and he only
needed two or three.
"Mister," the boy's voice was barely audible, as he kept his eyes on the ground away from the dog. "I'll sell you my dog."
Laughter burst from the man and the belly beneath the expensive suit
jiggled. "Son, I appreciate the offer, and I'm sure he's a fine animal,
but if I brought that mutt home, my wife would divorce me." He looked
at the dog and giggled again. "Where can I find a puppy on the day
before Christmas?" he spoke to himself as he stood and began to walk
away. "Have a merry Christmas, kid."
Bud was ready to go home, but the dog had climbed up with him, and was
sleeping soundly with his head in the boy's lap. Just as he was about
to wake him and leave, an old man staggered across the road and dropped
unceremoniously onto the bench. Fumes of whiskey enveloped the area as
the ragged man shouted with a smile, "Merry Christmas, youngster," and
gave him a slap on the leg. The drunk ran his hand through the thick
hair of the sleeping animal and told the boy that he had a unique
looking dog. "What do you make him out to be?" he questioned.
"I guess he's pretty much of a mutt," the boy answered. "But over the
years, I've grown kind of fond of him." The dog was dreaming and his
grin grew even more goofy and lopsided. Bud rubbed the nose as he had
so many times over the years. Again he saw the roses in the hand of his
mother, and almost without thinking, he turned to the man, "Mister,
I'll sell him to you for six dollars.
"Now, why would you want to sell a fine dog like that for six dollars?"
The question caused words to flow from Bud like they had never flowed
before. He told the inebriate about his mother...about her
illness....about the roses, and his mother's love of roses.
When the boy had finished, the gray haired old man had a far away look
in his eye. Somehow, through his alcohol muddled mind, he had traveled
back more than half a century. Clearly, he saw his mother and he saw a
child handing the woman a small bouquet of wild flowers. He recognized
the child as himself, before the world had beaten him into the man he
was today, living from drink to drink, waiting only for death to remove
the pain.
His hand went to his pocket and he felt the well worn ten dollar bill he
had hoarded to buy the whiskey that would make Christmas Eve and
Christmas Day bearable, or at least help him sleep through it. He
looked at the dog, then at the boy, and he saw himself all those years
ago.
Standing slowly, and with much effort, the grizzled old man took the
bill from his pocket and laid it on the bench. "Keep the dog," was all
he said, as he slowly walked away. Bud jumped to his feet startling the
dog. The boy grabbed the bill, and ran after the retreating figure.
When he caught up to him, the old man smiled through the tears in his
eyes, "You'd better get to the flower shop before it closes."
In his joy, the boy hugged the old man and turned toward the store. The
man watched him go. "Kids nowadays," he said to himself as he turned
toward his little shack on the edge of town.
Bud raced into the house with the grinning dog close behind him and
three beautiful roses in his hand. Slowly he walked to his mother's
room, looked inside, and made his way to the side of the bed. Her eyes
opened slowly, and a smile crossed her face as she saw her son place the
roses on her arm. She was to weak to speak but the smile, and the
tears slowly moving down her cheek told Bud that his gift had touched
her. He went to the other side of the bed, crawled in next to her, and
held her hand. As he began to doze, he dreampt that the hand would
always be there for him to hold. The peacefulness of the dream
shattered when his eyes slowly opened. To him, she had always been the
most beautiful woman in the world, and in death she remained so. While
he had slept, she had pulled the roses onto her chest, close to her
face as if to catch their fragrance. Her other arm was around Bud's
shoulder, pulling him close. As he looked at her, through his tears, he
pushed a wayward strand of hair back into place. He kissed her cool
forehead and let the tears flow freely. The dog put his head on the
edge of the bed, his eyes on the boy, and for the first time the boy
could remember, the stupid grin was gone. In the background he heard
the gentle music from the radio, "So this is Christmas....and what have
you done...another year over....and a new one's begun..."
On the edge of town, the old man lay under his blanket on a small,
rickety bed. He was starting to shake as his body demanded whiskey that
he could not supply, and he knew it was just the beginning. The night
would be a sleepless one and Christmas Day would be dreadfully long, but
he remembered the joy on the kid's face and had no regrets.
In another house, closer to the center of town, a little girl had
brought two months of shopping to an end in fifteen minutes. Wrapping
paper and half used toys were scattered everywhere. The mother carried
the little girl to bed while the father went to the kitchen to make a
place for the puppy. It would be a long night for him as well.
As the Cathedral bells chimed, people began to file from the church. It
had been an extraordinary service, by all accounts. The pastor had
preached one of his best sermons in years, and was receiving the
congratulations due him. The choir absolutely brought the music to
life, and even Viola sounded twenty years younger. In the candlelight,
the oldest members had to agree that the setting was the most beautiful
they had ever seen in the church. It had been a most memorable
Christmas indeed.
On the first Christmas Eve, a young woman prepared to give birth to the
greatest thing to ever set foot on this spinning pile of dirt. The
Creator God, wrapped in human flesh and taking human form would step
from eternity into time. The Creator touching his creation. Some two
thousand years later, as pastors preached, choirs sang, and gifts were
exchanged, that same Creator was still touching his creation. He was
gently wrapping his arms around a little boy....a boy holding three
beautiful roses and hugging an ugly dog, as they sat through the darkest
of nights. And, perhaps to the dismay of some of the more religious,
He was also in a lonely shack on the edge of town, sitting close to the
bed of a shaky old man who had given a few moments of Christmas joy to a
young stranger.
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