2008 Year in Review

THE LITTLE CHRISTMAS MIRACLES

I was going through my files recently. I found this story that I had written probably twenty years ago. It was a true story, and I thought I would share it with you during this Christmas season.

This story goes back to when we set out the spruce trees that form the wind and sound barrier that runs east of our front yard. My son, Phil, had started them as seedlings in our garden as a 4-H project. Later we had transplanted them to the fencerow. The trees were then about seven years old. They had grown well and were all about six to eight feet tall.

It was an early December morning when the "miracle" started. I was walking from the barn to the house, and as I looked over at the windbreak I noticed that something was different. When I got to the trees I could see what it was. There were two trees missing! Someone had sneaked in during the night, cut two of my trees, and hauled them away, obviously to use for Christmas trees.

I wasn't just upset, I was mad! I stomped around all morning letting everyone know that I was mad. That afternoon my wife, Clara, brought in the mail and called to me. She said, "Something came in the mail today that I think will interest you." She handed me a Christmas card that had been sent by some good friends. I know they sent us that particular card, knowing that we had planted lots of trees through the years and had a love for beautiful trees. That card couldn't have arrived at a better time, and it became my "miracle" card!

The card had a picture of a Christmas tree on the front and the message inside went something like this: "We went out to pick a holiday tree for our home today, and after searching we found what we thought was the most beautiful tree we had ever seen. We thought how wonderful it would be if we could share our tree with others. You will find a packet of seeds from our tree. We hope you will plant these seeds, and perhaps, someday, you will have a tree as beautiful as ours."

I stood there with those seeds in my hand, and I thought, "Somebody is telling me something." I realized that I could be upset forever, but that wasn't going to get my trees back. Maybe God was giving me a message that He had probably given me a million times, and that I seldom noticed. "Don't fuss over what is over and done--the seeds are in your hand--plant them--nurture them--grow new trees that may be more beautiful than the ones you had before." My miracle for the day!

The following Sunday our minister set a few minutes aside during the service for members of the congregation to share their favorite Christmas story. I told my "Christmas tree miracle" story.

The next Sunday, as we were leaving Church, a lady in our congregation, who had been fighting a tough battle with cancer, stopped me. She said, "I can never tell you how much your story last Sunday meant to me. It changed my outlook on a lot of things." As I thanked her, I thought maybe that was my second "Christmas tree miracle."

Keep looking for yours. The seeds are in your hands, too. MERRY CHRISTMAS!

by Orville Goodenough, Guest Columnist
December 8, 2008