“What are we doing, Ted?” “What do you mean? We planned this all out. We’re crashing the mayor’s election party. We just need to wait until the crowd is the right size so that we don’t stand out.” “Yeah, but why? Are you going through a midlife crisis?” “Midlife crisis? I’m only 35!” “Maybe you’re only gonna live to 70?” [...]

“Honey, I can’t find the snowman ornament. I looked through all of the boxes several times already.” Mom sat on a chair surrounded by open boxes and tins. “What do you mean? There are several snowmen in those boxes.” “Not just any snowman. The snowman you gave me for our first Christmas. It was our first ornament.” “Oh. That snowman.” [...]

Sometimes the best gifts don’t come wrapped in tidy packages with ribbons and bows, but this year’s gift started off that way. Mom and I sat in the living room floor on Christmas morning wrapping the last of the presents. These were small knick-knacks – things my mom had forgotten to wrap earlier. The lights from the tree were glimmering. [...]

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. “Dad, why are we here?” Ring. Ring. Ring. “To draw attention to the donation kettle. People are more likely to give to a person than they are to just a bucket.” Ring. Ring. Ring. “Yeah, but why are we here?” Ring. Ring. Ring. “Because everyone needs to do their part. A lot of [...]

“I want to be a shepherd! They get to carry big sticks.” Luke swung his hands, pretending to hit Carl with an imaginary stick. “Not me. I want to be a wise man. They get to wear a crown!” “They’re not real. It’s just a plastic crown. I saw ‘em last year.” Elizabeth spun her head to toss her hair [...]

Jason slid back into the shadows as he watched Pastor Ben emerge from the sanctuary. He didn’t want to slow down, as the wind seemed to slice his ears like a blade. A brief delay was better than running into Pastor Ben, though. He talked a lot  and Jason didn’t trust religious people very much. Better to hang back in [...]

I love Christmas. And I love Christmas stories. I laugh every time I watch Elf, A Christmas Story or Christmas Vacation. I get goose bumps when I watch It’s A Wonderful Life. I consider reading The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, The Night Before Christmas or Dicken’s A Christmas Carol beside a lighted Christmas tree a pure delight. And, as a Christian, [...]

Marcus stepped out of the shower and snickered as the idea hit him. He wrapped his towel around his waist and walked to the living room. As expected, Angela sat on the sofa watching Passionate Desires. He lurked in the hallway listening for the commercials to end. As the show resumed, he used the voices as his queue to enter [...]

The gentle lapping of the oars as they dipped in and out of the water and creaked against their rests was the only sound for miles around as the old man and the boy made their way out across the water. The little rowing boat cast out wide ripples into the reflections of the still skies above, steely and pale [...]

“Come on. I want to get you a Christmas gift. Isn’t there something you want?” “I’ve got you. That’s more than I could have imagined this time last year.” “And you really didn’t get anything last year?” “I got my stomach pumped… on Christmas eve.” “Oh” “It’s ok. I’m clean now. Santa came to visit me in the hospital.” “Santa?” [...]