SHINE BRIGHT

"Oops," said Mandy, "That is not what was supposed to happen." She quickly grabbed a paper towel and wiped up the orange juice that she had just spilled on the table. "I am so clutsy......what a dummy!" She hurried to wipe up the mess and to tidy up the kitchen. "I always make more mess than I need to. I have to learn to be more careful."

Just as she was finishing the breakfast dishes, the doorbell rang. She knew that it was her elderly grandmother who was coming over to stay with her over Christmas and New Years, as her parents were going to be out of town on holidays and had left earlier that morning, to take a six o'clock flight to Jamaica. Her parents had already decided that if Mandy's grandmother wanted to do so, she was going to be welcome to move in with them permanently. Mandy really did not like the idea at all.

"We really don't want to go anywhere at Christmas time, but that is the only time that we could book a flight on such short notice. After all, my company is paying for our trip," her mother had told her. "You will be fine with Grandma. Besides which, Doris is here in the downstairs apartment and you can get her to call us, if there are any problems between you and Grandma. Doris knows that Grandma gets the guest bedroom, and you can bunk in our room if you like. All three of you can watch our big flat screen tv together in the family room, if you want to do that. You are old enough now so that it is not off limits to you. We trust you. You may have Hannah come over too if you want." Hannah was her best friend.

"You are going to love Grandma, I promise you," her father had said to her, very gently. "I know, because she is my mother and she is such a wonderful lady. Anyhow, it is just about time that you really got to know your grandmother. After all, she is coming to stay here now, that is if she wants to live here."

He continued, "Don't forget that all the presents for Grandma and Doris are on the top shelf in the hall closet. The decorations are there too, so that you and Grandma can put up a tree together tonight, if she is not too tired from her long trip. I expect you to take good care of each other. I know you will. Just remember that I love you both."

"Where is my present?" Mandy wondered. "This is a fine state of affairs, having my mom and dad disappear at Christmas, and no present for me. And now I have to take care of an old lady too, possibly for the rest of my life." She remained silent, deep in thought.

"But I don't know Grandma at all!" Mandy had openly protested earlier, when she had learned that her parents were going away and that her grandmother was going to be there for the holidays, and that she might stay on after that too. "I only saw her one time and I was too little to remember. I was only two years old then." She was really upset, but she was not being given any choice at all in the matter.

"I am so sorry," her mother had said calmly. "You two will be just fine."

Whether Mandy liked it or not, Grandma was coming on the ten o'clock plane from Edmonton. Mandy had assumed at first that her grandmother was only going to stay for two weeks. "This is not fair!" she had hollered, as the airport limosine drove off with her parents. "I should be going with you."

She stood there and waved goodbye, even though she was really angry and scared. "I could have stayed with one of my friends, instead of having to be with some dumb, old lady that I don't know. At least then I might have had some fun over Christmas."

"What if I don't open the door to let her in?" Mandy pondered. "Maybe then she will just go away and I will not have to spend my holidays with her. She could go live in a hotel." Mandy knew in her heart that she would never get away with that as Doris was downstairs, and that she might as well meet her grandmother now. "I know that this won't be any fun at all!" she said aloud, tossing the wet tea towel on the counter and reluctantly heading for the front door. It seemed like a million mile walk.

"Do I really have to do this?" she asked herself, stalling as long as she could. She peeked out the window and saw a taxi backing out of the driveway. She could not see anyone on the side walk.

"This is it," she said to herself. "It's now or never."

"Mandy," she heard a frail, elderly, female voice call from the other side of the door. "It's your Grandma. Open the door, honey." It was as if her grandmother had sensed her hesitancy and knew that it was her on the other side of the door. Maybe she had heard the footsteps and knew that Mandy was afraid to open the door.

"Maybe Grandma is as scared as I am?" Mandy pondered. "She sounds so old." She put her hand on the door knob and turned it very slowly. She opened the door just a crack and took a quick look. All she saw at first, was a collection of boxes in various sizes and a couple of brown suitcases. "What on earth?" she wondered. "Grandma?" she called out. "Is that you?"

"Yes, it is me. I'm here," the voice said again. "You must be Mandy, but my, you look so mature for eleven."

All Mandy could see was someone in a long coat, wearing a pair of new black boots and glasses. There were brilliant, blue eyes peering from behind a bunch of brightly wrapped presents with huge red bows. She could not really see her grandmother's face.

"Would you like to give me a hand with these, please?" the elderly lady asked. "Take the ones on the top. Be careful though, because one of those is really quite fragile. That one is crystal for your mom. I did a little bit of extra shopping at the airport."

"Sure, I'll help you," Mandy said shyly. "There, I've got them." She stood there for just a moment, silently looking into the smiling face of the beautiful, elderly lady, dressed very elegantly in a full length, soft, white, wool coat and hat. Her hair was tied back from her face and shone in the light. "What a pretty silvery colour!" she thought to herself. "You are my grandmother?" Mandy said in amazement.

"I am," the gracious lady said gently. "And you are Mandy. You are a really beautiful young lady, so grown up. But then I knew you would be, as your father told my that you were turning into a gorgeous teenager. Every word he said was true."

"I am not quite a teen yet," Mandy protested. She was just a little bit embarrassed and very conscious of the fact that what she was wearing was a t-shirt and blue jeans. Her feet were bare. "This is not what I expected at all," she thought to herself. "I should have put on my good clothes." She was utterly amazed. "This is not somebody that needs to be taken care of. I am going to have a hard time keeping up with this lady as she is no crotchety old senior." Only her grandmother's voice betrayed her age.

"Well, do I meet with your approval? And may I come in?" her grandmother asked, after the moment of total silence. "I am not really the person that you expected to see, am I?"

"It is just that you look so much like my dad that it took me by surprise," Mandy replied. "Yes, please do come in." She opened the door wider and helped her carry in all of the boxes, the suitcases and the presents. "This is not what I thought was going to happen," she said to herself.

"Dear, if you would be so kind as to go down by the garage, there are some other boxes there. I told the taxi driver that he could leave them there. Could you bring those in for me too?" her grandmother asked, as she bent down to loosen the laces on her boots.

"Those boots are so neat, Grandma, so modern." said Mandy. She had expected her grandmother to dress like all grandmothers do, and this was certainly not typical grandmother attire. She looked more like an elderly fashion model. Mandy did not say anything else, but simply headed out the doorway towards the garage, to bring in the other boxes.

She took a deep breath and could sense that there was some bad weather heading their way. "Oh no, a storm is coming. I sure hope that dad and mom got away ok." So far it had been a very dark, damp December. There had not been even a hint of snow. Everything looked so dreary and dark, except when her dad had put up the Christmas tree lights and turned them on. When he had plugged them in, somehow everything seemed to come alive and glistened mysteriously because of the fog.

"You can put on the Christmas lights, but don't forget to turn them off at night," her dad had told her. Now she was wishing that she had put them on for her grandmother's arrival, even though it was still daylight.

Mandy was quite surprized as she looked at the huge stack of gifts beside the garage door. Every one of the boxes had been gift wrapped just like the others. "Wow!" said Mandy. "I cannot believe this." She picked up the rest of the presents and carried them to the door. Her grandmother was waiting there and helped her to stack them up against one wall.

"These will have to go under the tree later," her grandmother said. "But let's just get them out of the way for now. Where's your Christmas tree? Downstairs? Some of these are for your dad and your mom...and I brought one for Doris too."

"Where is mine?" Mandy asked herself, but was a bit ashamed as there was no tree to put them under. In fact, because she had been so difficult about having her grandmother stay with her for Christmas, her parents had decided not to get a tree before they left. That would be her job, they told her. Otherwise the three of them would have put it up and decorated it together.

"No snow and no tree. No parents at home for Christmas. Just one strange grandmother, who I don't know at all and a whole pile of presents for everyone but me. Well, maybe there is at least one for me in this pile. This should prove to be interesting," Mandy decided silently. "Maybe I can salvage Christmas after all."

"We still have to get a tree, Grandma," Mandy said. "Dad and mom were too busy getting ready to go, so the Christmas tree decorating gets to be our job. Mom said that Doris would help us. Here, let me take your coat and hat. Grandma, would you like a cup of mint tea? Dad told me that he always used to pick fresh mint for you, so that you could enjoy a cup of tea." Mandy was becoming more than anxious to help her grandmother, after having seen the huge pile of presents. She decided that she should try to make a good impression, just in case.

"Do you have Earl Gray tea?" her grandmother asked. "I would really enjoy that."

Just as Mandy headed for the kitchen, the phone rang. She raced for it, almost falling, as she tripped over a scatter rug. "Mom, Grandma's here," she said excitedly to her mother, as soon as she heard her voice on the phone. Tell dad to come to the phone. And mom, she is beautiful. I am making tea for her."

"Dad's on the phone, Grandma," Mandy said, as she handed her grandmother the phone. She pulled out the china tea pot from the hutch and one of the country garden teacups that her mother loved so dearly. "I'm almost scared to use these," she said to herself. "I just hope I don't break one. Mom would never forgive me."

"Your mom and dad are just leaving the airport now," her grandmother told her a few moments later. The flight had been delayed because of the bad weather, but they were to take off shortly.

"I should have said goodbye to them," Mandy said. "What if they never come back?" she thought to herself.

"I said it for you, sweetie," her grandmother reassured her. "Your dad and mom said that you were a bit upset because they were going away. I told them that you and I were going to be just fine together. We are, right?"

"Thanks, Grandma, here is your tea." said Mandy, handing her a cup and saucer. "Probably it was just as well that you talked to them. After all, I get to talk to them all the time."

"If you had not been here, I would have had a chance to talk to them myself," she thought angrily. "After all, they are my dad and mom, and not yours. Oh why did you have to come?"

Mandy remained silent watching her grandmother closely as she drank her tea. She offered her grandmother a tea biscuit and just as she started to speak, her words were cut short as the doorbell rang. "Grandma, I am really glad...."

"Just checking in to see if your grandma arrived on time," a tall, freckle faced, red haired, young lady said, as Mandy answered the front door. "Your dad and mom get away ok?" It was Doris at the door. She was a third year university student, who rented the downstairs apartment from Mandy's parents. Mandy nodded and took Doris into the kitchen to meet her grandmother. Again, she almost tripped on the scatter rug.

Doris only stayed long enough to say hello and then left to go to work at her part time job. "I will be around later on today if you want to get together," she told Mandy, knowing that Mandy was still upset about being left alone with her grandmother for Christmas. She had confided in Doris as her babysitter for years. "I told your mom that I would have stayed with you," she explained quietly as she left. "But your dad wanted you to spend time with his mom and have you get to know her. You do understand, right?"

"Yes, but I don't have to like it," Mandy said, being totally honest with Doris. "But I will mind my manners," she promised.

"I have to run. See you later, ok?" Doris gave her a hug. Her grandmother had not hugged her when she came in, just sent her outside for more boxes. When she told Doris that, she was amazed when Doris replied, "Well, maybe you ought to give your gran a hug? After all this is as strange for her as it is for you. Right?"

Mandy walked into the kitchen this time, being more careful this time, not to stumble on the scatter rug. "I am going to move that rug," she decided, picking it up and tossing it in the back entrance to the kitchen. "After all, I am the woman of the house now, and I can do what I want, at least until Grandma starts running the show. That probably won't be very long."

The front doorbell rang again and when Mandy opened the door, a huge red and white floral bouquet greeted her. Behind it was a good looking, tall, young man wearing an elf's hat with a red and green outfit. "These are for you," he said, tipping his hat to Mandy after he handed her the arrangement. He turned to go back to his delivery van. "Merry Christmas!."

"Wow!" said Mandy. "Grandma, look at these! They are absolutely gorgeous. And here is a card...."

"To welcome you home," she read. "Sorry we can't be there to meet you, Mom. Have a Merry Christmas. With all of our love, Jeff and Sarah."

"They are not for me," Mandy realized, but was quickly ashamed, as she saw the tears welling up in her grandmother's eyes. Her son and daughter-in-law had sent her flowers as an apology for not being able to be there when she arrived.

"I really don't deserve flowers anyway," Mandy told herself silently. "I was really awful to dad and mom."

"These are for both of us to enjoy," her grandmother said gently, well aware that there were some tensions between Mandy and her parents. "Where shall we put them?"

The doorbell rang again and Mandy raced for the door, thankful that she had been smart enough to move the scatter rug. This time she almost knocked the tea pot off the table in her excitement. She hurried to grab it.

"Hey Mandy, want to go to the bookstore?" Hannah asked, as she opened the door. "I want to get some books for my dad for Christmas." Hannah had also turned eleven that year. "I can't, my gran just got here," explained Mandy. "I have to stay here and take care of her."

"Oh no, you don't, young lady," her grandmother said sternly, looking her straight in the eye. "Just show me to my room and then I will have a rest, while you do your thing with your friend. I am fine all by myself. Besides which, I need to do some unpacking. We can spend some time together later. We need to make some plans for Christmas too, right?"

Mandy was more than relieved, as she still felt really awkward around her grandmother, as kind and gentle as she was. "You mean I can go Christmas shopping with Hannah? Are you sure?" she asked.

"Dear, I will be just fine by myself for a little while. I am not that old that I need to have a babysitter yet. Just show me my room, please."

Mandy did just that while Hannah surveyed the massive array of presents, boxes and luggage, lined up against the wall. "Your gran planning on staying forever?" she asked quietly, as they headed out the door together a few moments later.

"Maybe, oh who knows?" replied Mandy suddenly finding herself defending her grandmother. "And what's so bad about that if she does? She is my grandmother after all. Other girls have grandmothers who live with them."

"Have fun girls," her grandmother hollered from upstairs. "I'll see you both later! Maybe we can go out and get a Christmas tree then and we will decorate it together. I brought some popcorn. You two can pop it if you like."

"Your gran sounds like a really great lady," said Hannah, pulling her scarf closer about her face, as they went outside. "That wind is getting really cold. The forecast is for extremely bad weather. Maybe we should go and get a tree earlier today, as it might not be too much fun later on It is probably going to get colder. Let's surprize your gran. I don't really have to go to the bookstore for very long."

"Jamaica is supposed to be really nice this time of year," replied Mandy. "Sure wish I could have gone too," she thought to herself. "Get a tree together, just us? Sounds like a plan," she said aloud to Hannah. "Let's do it. I will buy a present for her at the bookstore too. Think she would like a cookbook?"

"Fresh gingerbread," Mandy said later, as they returned home, dragging a six foot spruce tree. The smell of fresh gingerbread cookies was unmistakeable. Hannah's mom made cookies for them all the time, but Mandy's mom was far too busy to do any baking. She usually just bought everything. "Smells great in here," she said, as she walked through the door. Her grandmother was no where to be seen. On the table, there was a big plate of fresh cookies and a note. "Be right back," it read.

"Looks like Grandma has gone out somewhere," Mandy said to Hannah, who was already into the cookies and milk. "These are great! Maybe it won't be so bad having my grandmother here after all!"

"Let's get the tree up before she gets back," Hannah said. "I know where the base is on the wall in the garage, because I was here, when you and your dad put it away last year. We can decorate it too before she gets back here. Know where the rest of the decorations are?"

About half an hour later, the two girls had the tree standing up in the corner of the family room.

"I think this is the most beautiful tree ever," Hannah said. "And just think. You and I did this all by ourselves. I bet you didn't think that two eleven year old girls could do this."

"I think the rest of the decorations are in the attic," replied Mandy, nodding her head. She had totally forgotten that her dad had told her where he put them. The tree looked really great even bare, as it was tall and very straight. The scent from the spruce tree was already radiating through the room. "Come on, let's go find them." There was a trail of needles all through the house, but those the girls would clean up later. They decided that the most important thing was to find the Christmas decorations.

Together they raced for the attic, with Mandy almost falling back down the stairs.

"You are so clutsy!" Hannah said, catching her just in time. "Be more careful or we will both land on our heads at the foot of the stairs." They laughed and headed into the dark attic filled with old antiques, books, boxes and several generations of what they considered to be ancient treasures. "I just love exploring your attic."

"Me too," replied Mandy, waiting for a moment to catch her breath. "This is fun."

"Where do we look first?" she wondered. "I know I put them away with my dad, but those boxes are not here now. I wonder if my dad threw them out by mistake?" Mandy looked all around the room. She was totally devastated, as the Christmas decorations were no where to be seen. "They are not here, not even one box," she told Hannah, after she had searched through the room. "Oh no, now we have a Christmas tree and no decorations. That is just great....and just when my Grandma is here for Christmas as well. What next?"

"Do you think your dad and mom put them in the school garage sale?" Hannah asked quietly, realizing that Mandy was getting more and more upset by the minute.

Mandy was fighting back tears. "This is just the icing on the cake," she said. "Looks like we bought that tree for nothing.....I got a cookbook for my gran though."

"She brought a lot of presents too," said Hannah. "I saw them. We just have to decorate the tree. After buying that book for my dad and that helping you buy that Christmas tree, I now have about three dollars left. Do you think we could get some decorations at the dollar shop with that?"

"I still have five dollars upstairs that I saved," said Mandy. "Let's go get whatever decorations we can with that. But we have to hurry as the store will close in about half an hour. Let's go right now."

The girls headed downstairs quickly, but with Mandy being a lot more careful this time. "The last thing I need is a broken leg," she said. "Wonder where Grandma went?"

"You young ladies will have to hurry," the store owner said, as he watched them load up a basket of Christmas tree ornaments and other decorations. "Seventeen dollars," he said firmly, as he stood there waiting for them count out their change. "That is what this comes to."

"We don't have enough money....eight dollars," Mandy said sadly. "We are going to have to put some of this back." She looked at the basket, trying to decide what to return to the shelves. "I should not have bought that cook book for my gran," she thought. "If I had not spent that money, I would have enough money to decorate the tree."

"By the way, just so you know....." the store owner said, "Everything that you have in your basket is going on half price tonight, so I will give it all to you for half price right now. We are closing very shortly anyhow." He quickly tallied up the total for them. "Eight dollars and no tax," he said, smiling at them. "And you both have a blessed and a happy Christmas. Wish your dad and mom a Merry Christmas for me too."

The girls could scarcely believe what had just happened and smiled happily at him, as they left the store with a huge bag of decorations. The store owner had even tossed in a huge red candy cane for each of them. "Thank you!" they hollered as they went back out into the cold. "Merry Christmas to you too!"

They did not stop to explain the reality that Mandy's parents had gone to Jamaica and had left her with a virtual stranger for the holidays.

"Oh no, we don't have a star to put on the top of the tree," Mandy realized, as they trudged homeward. "We should have bought a star too. We were not very smart."

"We'll figure something out," Hannah reassured her, as they walked on. The temperature was dropping rapidly and it was getting much too cold to be outside, as the wind was picking up too. "I think we might just have a white Christmas after all." Hannah was generally very upbeat and fun to be with, as nothing ever seemed to be too difficult for her. No problem ever seemed to be too much for her to solve.

Mandy on the other hand, was easily upset by the smallest things. Not having a star to put on the tree was just the final straw. "What a crazy day this has been," she confided in Hannah.

"Where is your Gran?" Hannah asked Mandy, as they put their new found treasures on the floor, in front of the tree in the family room, a little while later.

"Doing her granny thing, I expect," replied Mandy, still wondering what to do about the star for the tree. "I guess it is too late now to go back to the store. Besides that, we are both broke too." They decided that star or no star, the tree that they had brought home and put up, really did look quite good. With the decorations that they had bought, they knew that it would look even better. They quickly decorated the tree together.

"Let's get the mess tidied up before Gran gets back." Hannah said, pulling the vacuum cleaner out of the closet. "I found more presents," she hollered at Mandy. "A whole bunch of them in the closet. Wonder what is in all these other boxes?"

"Those are for Grandma," Mandy hollered back. "You hungry?"

"I have to go home for supper soon," Hannah answered. "But I am going to vacuum up all of the needles first, ok?"

"Great," replied Mandy, laughing as she spoke. "I never did like work, much less vacuuming." she said to herself. "I will get rid of all the boxes."

"Where were you, Grandma?" Mandy asked her grandmother a bit later when she returned home. "It is getting very cold out there and I was beginning to wonder if you were ok."

"I am just fine," her grandmother quickly reassured her. "I was just running some errands and visiting some old friends in the nursing home. Remember, I grew up here. I have not seen any of these people for many, many years. It was so wonderful just to see them again. We had such a good time. And young lady, may I ask how your trip to the bookstore went? And where is your little friend?"

"She's not that little," Mandy said. "She's eleven too, just like me. She had to go home for supper, Gran, and we had a really great day. Thank you for asking," Mandy replied. She was not about to tell her about the problems that they had encountered that day, or that they did not have a star for the tree.

"Now let's have a quick bite to eat, a bowl of soup or something, and then you and I are going out to get a Christmas tree. Let's head for the kitchen. Do you like tomato soup?"

"Sure, tomato soup sounds great, Gran. There are crackers in the cupboard too," Mandy replied, wondering where she had left the cook book that she had just bought for her grandmother. "Must be in the family room," she thought to herself. "I have to run and hide the cook book before Gran finds it. I want to wrap it up for her first, before I give it to her."

"Grandma, I am going to right back," she hollered, as she quickly headed downstairs to the family room. "I have to do something first." She picked up the bag with the cookbook in it and hid it in one of the cupboards, knocking over a small cactus plant, as she hurried to hide it. "Dumbo," she chided herself. "I'll have to clean that up later," she said, as she brushed away most of the dirt and stood the plant back up. /I>

Mandy looked at the tree that they had put up, in utter amazement. It seemed to be just about perfect, except for the missing star. The top seemed so bare. The ornaments shone in the glow of street lights coming through the window, as night approached. Hannah had decided that she was coming back after supper. They had agreed not to put the tree lights on until later that evening, when Mandy's grandmother and Doris were going to be there with them. "Almost perfect," said Mandy, as she closed the door and headed for the kitchen. She could smell the aroma of fresh soup on the stove. "Glad I got to that cookbook in time."

"Come and set the table for me, sweetie," her grandmother said, as Mandy entered the kitchen.

"I always hate setting the table," Mandy said to herself. "Sure, I can do that for you," she said to her grandmother. "Those were really good cookies today. Thank you ever so much for making those for us."

"You are welcome dear, now tell me about your day. You know something, your dad always loved that kind of gingerbread cookies."

"Gran, can you tell me about my dad when he was a kid, like me? Or about some of your Christmases when you were my age? I would really like to know."

"I will tell you what," her grandmother replied, as she put hot tomato soup into two bowls, one for her grand daughter and the other for herself. "I will tell you anything you want to know. But let's have soup first and then when we are putting up the tree, we will tell stories to each other. Would that work for you?"

"Sure will," answered Mandy. She was not about to tell her grandmother that the tree was already up and decorated but without a star. "Stories," she said to herself, "That is one way to break the ice."

Part Eight

The two had no sooner finished their soup than a loud knock was heard at the entrance way to the kitchen.

"Just dropping off some Christmas baking," one of the neighbours said, as she surveyed the warm kitchen. "Your mom wanted me to check and make sure that you two were ok. So I just popped in for a minute. These are especially for you." She handed them to Mandy's grandmother, who seemed totally surprised by her kindness.

The neighbour left as soon as she knew that Mandy and her grandmother seemed to be enjoying dinner together. "My turkey dressing is on the stove. I really feel like a heel for not staying, but I just can't," she explained as she headed for the door. "I will drop by another day," she promised.

"Thanks for the Christmas baking," Mandy said, as she held the door for the neighbour. "It is really appreciated, as my mom does not get much of a chance to bake very often. We will save some for her."

A moment later, her grandmother left the table to answer the front door. Doris was standing there with Hannah. "Nothing like perfect timing, " Mandy heard her say. "Now we can all go get a tree together. We cannot have Christmas without a tree. That would never do."

Hannah and Mandy both laughed, as Mandy suggested that they would make some popcorn and hot chocolate later on too.

Hannah pulled Mandy into the kitchen and handed her a grocery bag. "I found this," she said. Mandy just about broke into tears of joy, as she looked in the bag. Hannah had brought her an angel for the top of the tree. "Save it for later," she whispered. "I could not find a star but you can use this for the top of the tree."

"It is absolutely beautiful," replied Mandy. "I just realized that I don't have wrapping paper for the cookbook either."

"We'll figure something out," Hannah promised, knowing that Mandy was doing her best to give her grandmother a gift and to celebrate Christmas together.

"Grab your coats, girls," her grandmother said. "We don't have a lot of time to waste and it is getting very cold out there. The sooner we go, the sooner we will get back. All of you will have to help me carry the tree home."

Mandy knew that it was time to tell her grandmother what they had already done about the Christmas tree.

"Gran, want to see how big the room is?" she asked, holding the grocery bag behind her back.

"Probably a good idea," agreed Hannah, smiling innocently.

"Sure," said Doris. "It will just take a moment." She looked at the girls curiously, wondering what they were up to, as the expressions on their faces gave them away. Looking down, she spotted a tiny spruce needle on the floor. "Is this what I think this is? Oh, I see, you two have....." she started to say.

"Sh..." cautioned Mandy. "Don't spoil the surprise."

As everyone else entered the family room, Mandy hung back, waiting for the right moment to put the light on in the family room. She could still see a faint glimmer reflected in the ornaments on the tree. Even in the dark, it looked very pretty. She flicked the switch and was totally astounded at the expression of utter amazement that she saw on her grandmother's face.

"Well, I'll be...." she said, as the lights in the room went on. When Mandy turned on the light switch, it also put the tree lights on. "We already have a tree and it is decorated too. Now when did you girls do that? This afternoon? You said that you did not have a tree when I first arrived."

Mandy's grandmother reached over and gave her a warm hug. "It is absolutely beautiful!" she said. "So that is what you two were up to today. It is just beautiful! And you are the most wonderful grand-daughter in the whole world. You are the most wonderful grand-daughter's friend in the world too," she said, giving Hannah a hug. Then she hugged Doris. "I have heard so many good things about you from my son and daughter-in-law."

"Merry Christmas, Gran," Mandy said with tears in her eyes. "We all love you."

"Merry Christmas," Hannah said just a second or two later.

"Merry Christmas," Doris echoed.

"And a Happy New Year to you all," replied Mandy's grandmother. "This is going to be the best Christmas of all," she said.

"Gran," said Mandy a few moments later. "Would you put our star up on the tree, please. A Christmas tree has to have a star. That is what Christmas is all about, a Star named baby Jesus, who taught the real meaning of love. We could not find a star that looked like a star.....Hannah brought this angel......" She pulled it out of the bag and handed it to her grandmother.

"Perfect.......shine bright," Mandy's grandmother said first to the star and then to the girls, as she stood on the ladder to hang the angel on the top of the tree.

"We will shine like angels," Doris promised on behalf of the girls.

"Like angels in the sky......" Mandy continued. "Now let's get some hot chocolate and popcorn and make this into a real Christmas celebration."

"Oh my," Mandy's grandmother said suddenly, as she lost her balance, and the ladder she was standing on, tipped to one side. All of the girls rushed to grab the ladder, before it fell. Mandy's grandmother grabbed a tree branch to catch her balance. Several ornaments tumbled to the floor, bouncing on the rug as they fell. One of them landed in the spot on the floor where the flower pot had fallen earlier.

"Oh, am I ever clutsy," Grandma said, as the quick thinking girls grabbed the ladder, and held it for her while she climbed down. She was very relieved that she had not taken a tumble. "No harm done. I did knock some Christmas ornaments off the tree ," she said apologetically. She was really quite embarrassed at her clumsiness. "I think I am all right. I should have been more careful. I could have broken my neck."

"I am just like my Grandma," Mandy told Hannah later, as they cleaned up the mess they had made in the kitchen. They were stringing some popcorn for the tree. Doris was sitting in the family room with Mandy's grandmother. Both laughed heartily as Mandy said, "I am just as clutsy as she is."

"That's for sure," Hannah agreed. Even Doris laughed, as she knew only too well how much of a problem Mandy had. She was forever tripping over something, dropping things or knocking something over.

Later, they told Grandma about Mandy being really clutsy too and she burst out laughing. "Well, you had to inherit something from your old Gran," she said to Mandy. She wiped away the tears of laughter, relieved that the ice had been broken with all three of 'her' girls.

At that moment, Mandy knew that this was going to be her best Christmas ever. And it was.

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