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For those of you who, like me, are several hours away from sitting by the
fire...a quick tale and true:

A Christmas Eve tradition at our amateur actor/singer laden "night before"
celebration is storytime.  Our actor friend reads _Santa Cows_ (yes, that's
right) and _The Polar Express_, complete with jingle bell rings in all the
appropriate places--rung by my 34 year old daughter, Dana.  Dana owns the
book and bell; they were a present from me many Christmases ago.
Unfortunately, she has misplaced the bell and is so sad because this
tradition and these stories came into our family immediately after the death
of her father.  Oh, well.

Dana won't be able to come to Little Rock this year; she is spending a
wonderful holiday with my fantastic son-in-law and his family in Atkins,
Nebraska.  I'll miss her.  She called yesterday to let me know they were
leaving for the airport and that she would call me when they get there and,
oh yes, she had something to tell me.

Yesterday afternoon she traveled into Asheville, NC to do the last of her
Christmas shopping.  Tired and on her way home she spotted an elderly woman
carrying several sacks and pushing herself along in a walker with wheels.
Dana traveled on one block and then decided that her conscience wouldn't let
her go any farther; she made a u-turn and pulled up beside the woman.  Not
wanting to scare the heck out of her, Dana stood back and said hello.  Then
she asked if she needed a ride home.  The woman, at first surprised and a
little confused (wouldn't you be!) hesitated, then smiled and said, "Yes,
thank you!"  Dana made room in her car for walker, packages, and elderly
lady and drove her the last several blocks to her home.  She unloaded all
the above and set the packages on the lady's front porch and said good-by.
The very nice woman said "I can't pay you."  Dana said, "No, no, no.  I
don't want you to!  My pleasure" and turned to leave.  The woman said, "I
want to give you some little something."  She fished in her shopping bags
and handed Dana a small package.  Dana opened it...and found strung on a
length of red velvet, a gold jingle bell just like the one she lost this
past year.  Dana thanked her, then got in her car and cried very heart-felt
tears of wonder.

This happened yesterday.  What an extraordinary Christmas this will be even
with Dana in Nebraska and me in Little Rock.  I suspect we'll be reading
_The Polar Express_ via telephone this year...complete with jingle bell
rings in all the appropriate places.

Happy, happy Christmas!!!

Frances Morgan, MAPH
Central Arkansas Library System

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