Perfect Gift

'Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.'(2 Corinthians 9:15)

 

Today unfortunately Christmas has become the most commercialised festive celebration. Reading some of the inspiring Christmas stories has now become one of the ways for me to recapture the true meaning of Christmas. Here is one such story:

 

The writer wrote ‘during the summer of 1944, my father sold everything they owned, took all the money and disappeared from our lives.’ His mother suddenly found herself having to take care and provide for the five boys.

 

He is thankful to his mother for remained positive throughout this difficult time, put in her best efforts she could, doing all the man tasks such as ‘horse-drawn plough, haul hay for the cattle, and harvest crops.’ Then Christmas approaching and the writer noticed his mother didn’t smile as much as before. Later he came to know that it was because she was worried that she couldn’t afford to buy Christmas presents for the children.

 

One day he saw his mother returned from the forest with a stack of tree limbs. She would cut these pieces of wood into different shapes. On Christmas Eve when the family gathered around the Christmas tree, his mother gave out the presents. His brothers opened the packages and found ‘brightly coloured trucks, tractors and trains’, all ‘beautifully crafted’. As for the writer, his present was a hand-carved bow and a quiver of arrows.

 

The writer concluded that, ‘Looking back, my mother’s determination and perseverance changed the harsh reality of that time, transforming our poverty into a memorable Christmas filled with delight’.

 

This story really warmed my heart. Truly, Christmas is about giving oneself, making sacrifices, just like Christ.