Hesitating, the first
snowflakes fell. It was one day before Christmas. There was this small
house in front of a big forest, which was breathing quietness. Just every
now and, two rabbits disturbed the peace and quietness. They seemed to
be searching for something between the dead leaves.
Inside, a man stared
through the window, as if he was waiting for something. Except for the
man, there were two other people in the small room. They were his daughters
in the age of fifteen and seventeen, who were both reading. Mary was the
youngest one and Leslie was her sister. They were both of the dreaming
type, this unlike their father who, being a lumberjack, could not see any
good in dreaming.
Quite often, it bothered
him that his daughters were reading. This was not in the first place because
he could barely read himself but because books were expensive and he did
not make a lot. Every once and a while Leslie spoke up by pointing out
that they read used books but this did not mean much to the poorly educated
lumberjack.
"Dad, could we please
go for an evening walk?" Leslie asked. The man growled a bit and then nodded.
Meanwhile, it was snowing considerably and so the girls dressed accordingly.
To make sure that they would not get lost, they took the familiar path,
which ran along the wood. To go into the wood itself, was even now for
an experienced trapper risky. As more snow fell, the evening became lighter.
Mary and Leslie continued
in silence. They both had the same thought: their mother who had died a
year ago because of terrible fever. So their father's behaviour was understandable.
When the girls were already at quite a distance from their home, rather
suddenly the wind increased. The sisters got a startle out of this because
they knew very well what this could mean... They looked at each other but
there was no need for words and they returned. However, a return was out
of the question because soon they lost their way. Leslie got overwhelmed
by fear and started to cry. Mary tried to comfort her older sister. "Take
it easy Leslie, we will just wait on this trunk" she said and put her arm
around her sister. The wind increased to gale force and it seemed as if
the snowflakes were trying to beat each other in size and speed. Soon,
the snow came to their knees. Leslie was sobbing silently and Mary was
praying. Suddenly, their surroundings were strongly lit. The girls covered
their eyes quickly. "Don't be afraid!" a soft voice said and the sisters
looked up at once because they had recognized their mother's voice. Leslie
could not speak at all but Mary felt that this happened for real. "O mother,
you are returning!" Mary cried. "Only temporarily, after this you will
have to go on your own on this earth," their mother said, emphasizing 'this'.
The bright white light, which surrounded their mother's appearance, became
less bright and also got different shades of color. "Are there more planets
like the earth?" Leslie asked who had recovered from the unusual event.
"Yes, dearest Leslie, many more but most important is that it is over there
always Christmas..." and their mother brushed away a tear. Now, Leslie
could not control her emotions any more either and burst out crying. Then
a miracle occurred: her tears changed into beautiful pearls, which she
could catch in her hands. Mary looked up to her mother with a question
mark on her face, whose appearance spread now a soft glow.
"It is really you
isn't it...?" she asked almost begging. "Yes Mary, it's really me. But
what happens here is not done by me because only God can do that. This
event has a special meaning. It's an expression of God's Love for His Creatures.
With these pearls part of the hunger, poverty and misery can be solved.
Every one of us, gets the chance to perform a very beautiful task; to spread
Peace and Love all over the world." Tomorrow, it will be Christmas. Your
tears will be normal tears again because everybody will have to contribute
to the Great Plan him- or herself. Money will only be a tool. One has to
act from the heart...
Their mother's shape
began to fade away but Mary and Leslie were not sad. They were very happy
because they received the most beautiful Christmas message of their lives.
They did not need to think long about the destination of the pearls. They
would give one to their father and the rest would go to the needy ones.
They themselves did not even want a pearl since their mother had given
them something that was worth much more.
