A Good Christ-mas Story

[Dawgcrazee]

Get a tissue...It is long but worth the read.
Thanks,
Teri

Three years ago, a little boy and his grandmother came to see
Santa at Mayfair Mall in Wisconsin. The child climbed up on his lap,
holding a picture of a little girl. "Who is this?" asked Santa,
smiling.
"Your friend? Your sister?"

"Yes, Santa," he replied. "My sister, Sarah, who is very
sick," he said sadly.

Santa glanced over at the grandmother who was waiting nearby,
and saw her dabbing her eyes with a tissue.

"She wanted to come with me to see you, oh, so very much,
Santa!" the child exclaimed. "She misses you," he added softly.

Santa tried to be cheerful and encouraged a smile to the boy's
face, asking him what he wanted Santa to bring him for Christmas.
When they finished their visit, the Grandmother came over to help the
child off his lap, and started to say something to Santa, but halted.

"What is it?" Santa asked warmly.

"Well, I know it's really too much to ask you, Santa, but ."
the old woman began, shooing her grandson over to one of Santa's
elves to collect the little gift which Santa gave all his young visitors.
"The girl in the photograph . my granddaughter .. well, you see ... she
Has leukemia and isn't expected to make it even through the
holidays," she said through tear-filled eyes. "Is there any way, Santa ...
any possible way that you could come see Sarah? That's all she's
asked for, for Christmas, is to see Santa."

Santa blinked and swallowed hard and told the woman to leave
Information with his elves as to where Sarah was, and he would see what
He could do.
Santa thought of little else the rest of that afternoon. He
knew what he had to do. "what if it were MY child lying in that hospital
bed, dying," he thought with a sinking heart, "this is the least I can
do."

When Santa finished visiting with all the boys and girls that
evening, he retrieved from his helper the name of the hospital where
Sarah was staying. He asked the assistant location manager how to get
To Children's Hospital.

"Why?" Rick asked, with a puzzled look on his face.

Santa relayed to him the conversation with Sarah's
Grandmother earlier that day. "C'mon .... I'll take you there," Rick said
softly.

Rick drove them to the hospital and came inside with Santa.
They found out which room Sarah was in. A pale Rick said he would wait
out in the hall. Santa quietly peeked into the room through the
half-closed door and saw little Sarah on the bed. The room was full of what

appeared to be her family; there was the Grandmother and the girl's
brother he had met earlier that day. A woman whom he guessed was Sarah's
mother stood by the bed, gently pushing Sarah's thin hair off her
forehead.

And another woman who he discovered later was Sarah's aunt, sat
In a chair near the bed with weary, sad look on her face. They were
talking quietly, and Santa could sense the warmth and closeness of
the family, and their love and concern for Sarah. Taking a deep breath,
and forcing a smile on his face, Santa entered the room, bellowing a
hearty, "Ho, ho, ho!"

"Santa!" shrieked little Sarah weakly, as she tried to escape
her bed to run to him, IV tubes in tact.

Santa rushed to her side and gave her a warm hug. A child the
tender age of his own son -- 9 years old -- gazed up at him with wonder
and excitement. Her skin was pale and her short tresses bore
telltale bald patches from the effects of chemotherapy. But all he saw
when he looked at her was a pair of huge, blue eyes. His heart melted, and
he had to force himself to choke back tears. Though his eyes were
riveted upon Sarah's face, he could hear the gasps and quiet sobbing of
the women in the room. As he and Sarah began talking, the family crept
quietly to the bedside one by one, squeezing Santa's shoulder or his hand
gratefully, whispering "thank you" as they gazed sincerely at him with
shining eyes.
Santa and Sarah talked and talked, and she told him excitedly
all the toys she wanted for Christmas, assuring him she'd been a very
good girl that year. As their time together dwindled, Santa felt led
in his spirit to pray for Sarah, and asked for permission from the girl's
mother. She nodded in agreement and the entire family circled around
Sarah's bed, holding hands. Santa looked intensely at Sarah and asked her
if she believed in angels.


"Oh, yes, Santa ... I do!" she exclaimed.

"Well, I'm going to ask that angels watch over you,! "he
said.

Laying one hand on the child's head, Santa closed his eyes and
prayed. He asked that God touch little Sarah, and heal her body from this
disease. He asked that angels minister to her, watch and keep her. And
when he finished praying, still with eyes closed, he started singing
softly, "Silent Night, Holy Night . all is calm, all is bright." The
family joined in, still holding hands, smiling at Sarah, and crying
tears of hope, tears of joy for this moment, as Sarah beamed at them
all.
When the song ended, Santa sat on the side of the bed again and
held Sarah's frail, small hands in his own.

"Now, Sarah," he said authoritatively, "you have a job to do,
and that is to concentrate on getting well. I want you to have fun
playing with your friends this summer, and I expect to see you at my house
at Mayfair Mall this time next year!" He knew it was risky proclaiming that,

to this little girl who had terminal cancer, but he "had" to. He had
to give her the greatest gift he could -- not dolls or games or toys --
but the gift of HOPE.

"Yes, Santa!" Sarah exclaimed, her eyes bright.

He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead and left the
room. Out in the hall, the minute Santa's eyes met Rick's, a look passed
between them and they wept unashamed. Sarah's mother and grandmother
slipped out of the room quickly and rushed to Santa's side to thank him.

"My only child is the same age as Sarah," he explained
quietly. "This is the least I could do." They nodded with understanding and

hugged him.

One year later, Santa Mark was again back on the set in
Milwaukee for his six-week, seasonal job which he so loves to do. Several
Weeks went by and then one day a child came up to sit on his lap. "Hi,
Santa! Remember me?!"

"Of course, I do," Santa proclaimed (as he always does),
smiling down at her.

After all, the secret to being a "good" Santa is to always
make each child feel as if they are the "only" child in the world at
that moment.

"You came to see me in the hospital last year!" Santa's jaw
dropped. Tears immediately sprang in his eyes, and he grabbed this
little miracle and held her to his chest. "Sarah!" he exclaimed. He
scarcely recognized her, for her hair was long and silky and her
cheeks were rosy -- much different from the little girl he had visited just
a year before.
He looked over and saw Sarah's mother and grandmother in the
Sidelines smiling and waving and wiping their eyes.

That was the best Christmas ever for Santa Claus. He had
witnessed --and been blessed to be instrumental in bringing about -- this
miracle of hope. This precious little child was healed. Cancer-free.
Alive and well. He silently looked up to Heaven and humbly whispered,
"Thank you, Father. 'Tis a very, Merry Christmas!

If you believe in miracles you will pass this on..I did!


--



Food for Thought:
Income is important, so we go to work. Most of us go 5 days a
Week and will work later than scheduled if asked.
Food is important, so we eat. We try to do this two or three
Times a day.
Sleep is important, so we try to get rest each day of the week.
So, if God is important, how often do we work for him? How often
do we pray?
Read our Bibles? Attend church? Hmmm.

[bettyeanne]

That was beautiful .... thank you so much for sharing!! My Patrick loves Christmas and children ... he would celebrate Christmas year round if he could. He even looks like Santa and this year he will actually get to wear his suit and be Santa for a group of children ... he is soooo excited! It breaks his heart that is has all become so commercialized and the real meaning seems to be more and more forgotten.

[Dawgcrazee]

Thank you....and I love, love, love the picture! He definately looks the part! I'd love for you to attach that picture to this thread so folks can enlarge it.
Teri