I never thought that I would make it this far without my sweet little Christopher, but thanks to the wonderful angel mommies that I have met along the way, here I am. I wonder if I am imagining this holiday scene that unfolds before my eyes. Did I create it in my imagination to have some comfort, or am I really seeing this? Well, I guess I might as well continue walking along the way here....
I am walking through the woods, and snow glistens on the branches of the trees. There are icicles hanging down, and I hear the crunch, crunch, crunch of the packed snow under my boots. At the end of the woods, there is a clearing. There is a huge pine tree here, and it looks as if someone has started decorating it. Somehow this looks familiar, like something I
have seen in a dream. The closer I get, the more sure I am that I have found the place that I have always been searching for.
I even hear water running. Where could that be coming from? I look up to see a little wooden bridge that goes over a brook in the woods. I guess it's not quite cold enough for it to be frozen over. There is an older woman carrying a baby girl in her arms, walking over the bridge. As she comes closer, I see that the baby must be Madelyn, her mommy told me that Aunt Phyllis
would be carrying her over the river. What a marvelous gift for Denise!
Now I can see more clearly that there are children here! They are having fun decorating the biggest Christmas tree I have ever seen. And I can hear laughter, and singing, they are singing Christmas Carols. Behind the tree, there is a little campfire, and I see sled tracks on the hill coming down to the tree. My heart is overflowing with joy, I just know that this is the
place. But where is Christopher? I feel my heart skip a beat thinking that maybe he just isn't here. I walk around to where the children are happily getting out the decorations. There are little angel ornaments, some girls and some boys, they even have names on them -- I can even read some of the names -- Chrislyn, Ryan, Rachel, Chris, Liam, Trey, Trevor, Toby, Josh, Julian,
Shelby, Christopher Lee, Alana, Morgan, Hunter, Parker....
There's a young man with broad shoulders, it must be Kenneth, he is showing the decorations to two little boys, Samuel and Pierce, that's them with huge grins on their handsome little faces. And look, there's a little boy running with his, Logan it says, oh his mommy will be so happy to see him here. And there are Matthew and Anna putting their ornaments on together. And
here comes Kyle with his ornament, he is helping his brother John and sister Sherri put their ornaments on. But where is my little Christopher? I walk around to the other side of the campfire, I just have to find him!
Oh, I should have known, now I see him, why of course, he's setting up a Christmas train to run under the tree. This was really his favorite part of the decorating. He is taking his time as he always did, making sure it's just right. But who is the little dark-haired boy sitting next to him? Oh my, this just has to be Devon! And he is just so mischievous, whenever Christopher puts a car on the track... Devon takes it off and starts playing with it! His mommy will enjoy this so much. Finally, I see Christopher laugh and whisper something in Devon's ear. I guess Devon can't keep secrets though, he yells back "I'll go check on the hot cocoa!"
Devon runs over and grabs Logan's hand, and they march over to where the campfire is. Christopher starts working on his setup again. Alexandra, Nicky and Grace toddle along after Devon and Logan. There's a very pretty dark-haired girl there at the campfire, stirring the hot cocoa. Devon yells, "Weezee, when will we get to have our snack?" So this must be Louise, won't her mommy love to see her here!
Then all of a sudden I hear footsteps coming behind me. I turn around to see....
Brandi walking up behind Maria and whispering "What a beautiful sight to see!" Our angels all together, spreading the holiday cheer among all the beautiful people in Heaven. After taking in the beautiful sight before me, I start to notice the little
details.. I see "Lego Angels" hanging on the tree in different places.. I'm willing to guess that Kyle, John and Christopher made them while Matthew, Anna, and Rachel took turns hanging them up. Look at Rachel.. Miss Perfectionist.. rearranging all the ornaments to her liking!!!
Ryan and Trevor are helping Christopher get his train just right... CHOO CHOO Christopher starts it up and around it goes... chug-a-chug-a-chug-a-chug-a-CHOO CHOO... 'round and 'round it goes. Christopher Lee and Julian clap in delight as the train goes around their side of
the tree, which they have been busy decorating with Lego and Angel ornaments.
I see Logan searching for the perfect place for his special ornament... he reaches up.. stands on his tippee toes... almost there.. reaching..whew! He got it up where he wanted.. right next to the ornament with a picture of his beautiful Mommy's face!
Then I see this tall handsome guy... I know it has to be Josh.. he is holding the star for the top of the tree.. it's identical to the one a special family made for his Mom.. and he grins broadly, knowing that his Mom would love seeing him add the star to the tree... he lifts up a little girl.. with brown hair.. big blue eyes.. why yes.. it is my Chrislyn... he hands the star to her to put on the tree and I see her looking at Josh with really serious eyes... as she shakes her head no... I hear her whisper "No Josh, it's Dec. 4 and it's a tradition to put the star on the tree today.. for YOU to put the star on the tree today." So Josh kisses her cheek and puts her down while he reaches up to put the star on the tree.. I hear him whisper softly "I'm thinking of you today and everyday Mom and thank you for bringing me into this family.. for I have been blessed to have known the deep unconditional love you showed to me for my lifetime."
I hear giggles... I look over and see Kimberly's sweet angel Devon all decked out in a tux... "If my Uncle is getting married..well..then so am I" he says to his friends Chris, Liam and Trey. He walks over to Chrislyn and gets down on his knee.. and of course they are going to be family for sure now.....
And then Maria and I hear the footsteps of another special Mommy coming to join us... peeking over our shoulders, we see it is........
Monika, joining Brandi and Maria she whispers to them, "isn't this a glorious sight to see our children once again playing so happily..." Louise calls out that the hot cocoa is ready... as all the children grab their fluffy white clouds with the silver linings to sit on around the camp fire, Josh begins to read The Greatest Story Ever Told... the birth of Jesus. As Chrislyn, Devon, Christopher and Matthew sit in a small circle, while Anna and Logan share a cloud, Sherri, John, Kyle, Ryan and Rachel gather around too. Louise holds Liam and gently rocks him, as
Trey, Trevor, Toby, Christopher, Julian, Shelby and Christopher Lee sit huddled together, Alana and Samuel come running up hand-in-hand. Samuel pulls at Alana and says, "Come on, Alana, we'll
miss the story!" The two cherubs plop down on their cloud just as the story of the birth of our Savior begins. Their bright eyes start growing heavy from all the day's activities.
Then we hear the footsteps of yet another Mommy coming to peek at her angel. It is......
Kimberly, coming to watch our beautiful angel children. As I join the group of other mommies I notice how intently all the children are sitting listening to Josh read the Christmas story. Almost to the end I start to see some wee eyes growing tired. Louise, John, Kyle, and Julian place fluffy blankets on
the little ones. It brings tears to my eyes to see Matthew, Anna and Trevor all giggling pretending to be asleep for their nap. Meanwhile Maria's son Christopher, Francine's son Ryan, Daphne's son Christopher, and BethAnne's son Christopher Lee are whispering they are too old for naps and run off to hide. All of a sudden Devon runs out from behind the bushes and yells "Got
ya!" I turn to see that he pelted Ryan with a big snow ball. Now Ryan and the Christophers are all hurrying to make snow balls. Devon runs and gets John and Julian, and now a big battle commences. After the boys are all worn out from their snow ball fight, all the angels decide it really is time to settle down. Chrislyn, Logan, Devon all hand in hand are running to help with
the babies Rachel, Liam, and Trey. I can see the pride in their eyes as they love being big and helping with the younger children. What a wonderful loving scene before me.
I want to run to them but I hear footsteps coming up behind me I turn and see............
Dawn, who realizes that now that our angel babies have picked the
perfect Christmas tree and decorated it with their personal touches to perfection it is time for them to go to the Christmas Eve services at church. They will be performing a play of Jesus' birth directed by Josh. Josh has told them the story of the night Jesus was born and the real meaning of Christmas.
After a long journey Mary (who is played by Sherri) and Joseph (who is played by Kyle) stop at an inn. The inn keeper (who is played by John) tells them that the inn is full but offers them the stable. In the stable Mary gives birth to baby Jesus (who is played by Liam). She wraps him in swaddling clothes and gently lays him in the manger. The angels...Trevor, Chrislyn, Devon, Logan, Rachel and Anna, go forth to spread the word of
great joy "a savior has been born."
The star over Bethlehem shines brightly while the shepherds...Trey, Toby, and Christopher watch over their flock. Three wise men Christopher Lee, Matthew, and Ryan follow the star to the stable and kneel by baby Jesus offering the gifts of frankincense, gold and myrrh.
At the end of the program three more angels appear...Louise,
Julian, and Shelby. They are each carrying a lit candle. They in turn have the angel mommies light their candles from theirs and we all proceed to sing the hymn "Silent Night". At the end of the hymn we try to extinguish our candles but the flame still glows. As angel mommies we realize that these flames are in
memory of our angel babies and the flame will never quit burning... the flame will always be forever bright.
We hear more footsteps crunching through the snow. We all turn around to see....
Joeann, who is walking up the path, following the tracks made by a small sled. In the distance, she sees a boy pulling a little one on a sled. She walks faster and faster, she has a feeling that she knows him....he turns to wave to someone and her heart leaps up for joy, it is her beautiful son John. And who is that little one on the sled? Oh it is so wonderful, it is her little angel, Sherri, this is just so amazing. Christopher comes running over and grabs John's hand. "I need your help," he says. John pulls Sherri on the sled over to where the makings of a snowman lie on the ground. He proceeds to help Christopher, Toby, and Josh put the head on. Before they can do anything else, they hear voices singing.... "Star of wonder, star of night. Star with royal beauty bright. Westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light." Sherri claps her hands with delight, even she knows that is her brother Kyle leading the carols.
John and Christopher head off toward the singing, with Christopher pulling Sherri on the sled this time. John runs as fast as he can to join his brother. He waits for Christopher to bring the sled and reaches down to pick up his little sister. He holds her as a new song begins. Kyle, who could never carry a tune before, and Louise are leading the carolers with angelic voices, among them are Chrislyn, Devon, Matthew, Anna, Ryan, Logan, Rachel, Liam, Trey, Trevor, Christopher, Julian, Shelby, Christopher Lee, and even Sherri knows the words to this one... "Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let earth receive her King. Let every heart prepare him room. And heav'n and nature sing. And heav'n and nature sing. And
heav'n and heav'n and nature sing."
Joeann has tears in her eyes and turns to see....
...that Desiree has now joined them, watching and listening to the beautiful voices fill the crisp winter night. Desiree turns to the other mommies and whispers, "Did you ever think we'd ever see anything so beautiful?"
There were a few hushed answers before she said, "I guess we just had to believe..." her words lingered as they turned their attention back to their angels.
Her eyes searched frantically for her precious son. She wondered
where he was and if she would know him. A bit of doubt and fear filled her heart as she wondered if Logan would sense that she was here ~ would he know her?
The silence was broken with the twinkling sound of giggles, like crystal bells, the angels' laughter filled the night. A chubby, blonde boy walked to the edge of the meadow where the snow lay fresh and undisturbed; sparkling like diamonds beneath the clear moon. He turned his blue eyes toward his friends beneath the beautiful Christmas tree.
"Come, let's do something special. I need to do this for a special person. She's always wanted to see me make a snow angel." One by one, Sherri, Kyle, John, Rachel, Christopher, Chrislyn, Devon, Matthew, Anna, Ryan, Liam, Trey, Trevor, Toby, Josh, Christopher, Julian, Shelby and Christopher Lee join Logan in the clearing. They laugh and squeal as they drop to the ground. The laughter continues as the powdery snow beneath them begins to take form. Very carefully they stand up and smiles light their faces as they gaze at the "snow angels" they made.
Anna puts her hand in Logan's and says softly, "This was a
wonderful thing to do for your mommy, Logan. You've given her the perfect gift." She reached up and touched the tear on his cheek and in an instant his tears had turned to snowflakes, and his little mouth was lit with a beautiful smile.
Louise walks over to Logan taking his chubby little hand in hers, "More hot cocoa anyone?" A chorus of "yes" fills the air. "Who wants marshmallows?" Chrislyn asks. "Me...me....me.." giggles Devon.
"Me to! Me too!" Matthew and Anna say together then break out in
giggles running after Louise and Logan.
Josh takes Christopher and Ryan by the hand and follow. While Trevor and Toby chase after. Christopher, Julian, Shelby and Christopher Lee skip behind. Desiree watches as they all gather near their Christmas tree. The snow begins to fall. Light, fluffy flakes drift softly through the air. For a moment Desiree begins to cry, a stream of tears run down her face, the old familiar pain is back. A pair of dark blue eyes, full of wisdom and love, find hers. And in a moment she knows. Her angel is real.
She smiles and whispers, "I love you," as she brushes the snowflakes from her cheeks. She turns to the other mothers and says, "All we have to do....is believe!"
The sound of approaching footsteps makes everyone turn to see........
... Lena coming down the path. "Oh Desiree, how beautiful that Logan has made snow angels for you. I just love snow angels -- only in heaven would Rachel have been able to make them. It doesn't snow much in Texas."
As our angels all gather for more hot chocolate they begin whispering. They all begin squealing "it's time to sing, it's time to sing." The most
beautiful music I have ever heard just comes from the sky and the sound of each of our angels singing "Jesus Loves Me" fills the air. Oh how I know that this must song have been Rachel's idea -- she knows that mommy has a special place in her heart for this song and has for so long wanted to hear her sing it. But it was better than I could have ever imagined the harps and
sweet voices are just indescribable. As they finish singing, each angel approaches their mommy and gives them an eternal hug and angel kisses. They are each so pleased that their plan has worked and that all their mommies have become such good friends -- for the truth is that they all sent us to each other.
Lena hears the crunching of snow behind her, and looks around to see....
BethAnne, as her eyes glaze over to see her son, Christopher Lee
playing under the Christmas tree with the train and sitting next to him is his sister Ashley Renee. They have so many angel friends and seem so happy it brings a tear to BethAnne's eye. Thoughts of joy and happiness overcome her as she watches Christopher Lee jump up and chase after Chrislyn until they both stop under the mistletoe and Christopher Lee pops up to kiss Chrislyn's cheek just as Ashley Renee walks up. Startled Chrislyn runs away and Christopher Lee shrugs and looks over at Ashley Renee who is giggling at her brother. Smiling Christopher Lee then walks up to Ashley Renee and snatches a cookie from her and runs away. Christopher Lee runs up to the Christmas tree where Ashley Renee, Ryan, Kyle, Sherri & John are putting up some
twinkling lights on the tree. Christopher Lee decides to sit and watch the train go around with Matthew, Maria's Christopher, Julian & Logan. Christopher Lee walks over to Josh to ask him for a ride on the sled when just then more footsteps are heard.
I turn around and....
Just then more footsteps are heard. Lena and BethAnne momentarily turn their eyes away from all the sweet angels before them and see that Sabina is trying to move closer and closer to the children playing. Unused to the snow, Sabina is finding it hard to walk quietly. She is trying to be oh so careful and not to disturb any of the children having such fun. Lena and BethAnne see Sabina crying tears of joy as she watches her precious son Julian amongst all his angel friends. She looks on this ocean of happiness as all the angels frolic playfully in the beautiful white snow. How good the eternal hug and angel
kisses Julian smothered her with moments before had felt to her, and Sabina is quite sure all the other angel mums felt exactly the same sensations as their angels hugged and kissed them at this special gathering. Oh how wonderful it feels to share in each other's excitement and happiness.
Finally remembering that she had placed a basket filled with special treats beside her when she arrived, Sabina calls Julian who runs energetically to her. "Would you like to help me give your special friends a little Christmas gift from Australia?" she asks him.
"What an amazing Christmas this is, isn't it Julian? SNOW at Christmas time, and such happy faces everywhere!!"
Racing back in the direction of his friend Louise, Sabina hears Julian’s deep voice shouting out, "Yeah. Legend!! Come and help me Louise." They both run back to Sabina and grab armfuls of presents which have tiny toy platypuses, kangaroos, koalas and kookaburras attached to the top of them. Julian runs to Christopher with a present with a platypus on top of it. He says, "Hey Christopher, this one is definitely yours." Maria smiles as she watches Christopher grin at Julian.
Julian has raced to Devon with a present and Devon is jumping up and down with excitement. Seconds later Devon bounded up to his Mommie, Kimberly, to show her his gift. Eventually Julian and Louise -- with the help of Kyle, Josh, Toby and Kenneth -- have given a gift from the basket to many of the little angels, including Chrislyn, Christopher, Matthew, Anna, Sherri, John, Ryan, Logan, Rachel, Liam, Trey, Trevor, Shelby, Alana, Samuel, Morgan, Alexandra, and Pierce. Then they peek into the basket and select one for themselves. Meanwhile the sound of laughter and giggling echoes for miles and miles -- what bliss.
Sabina feels a hand on her shoulder, and turns to see...
...Joan, who approaches in the soft snow cautiously. She has
heard the happy whispers of her friends, but can it be true? Are
her babies really, there, playing so happily? That question is
answered immediately, for there are her two precious children,
Anna and Matthew, right in her view. They are clutching their new
toys from their friend, Julian, and whispering happily that their
Opa lives in Australia. Now they have this special connection to
him.
Anna grabs Matthew's hand and runs toward the tree. She saw some sparkly ornaments that she just has to touch, and her gentle brother is willing to follow his strong-willed sister's lead. They giggle when they find that Logan, Rachel, Liam, Pierce, Kenneth, Nicky and Trey are already playing with the ornaments, while Chrislyn, Daphne's Christopher, and Sherri, laughing all the while, struggle to keep the ornaments on the tree. Nearby, Maria's Christopher, Devon, Ryan, Julian and Christopher Lee work on a Lego city to accompany the train. Suddenly, Josh and Toby announce that it is time for a game, and Joan holds her breath when they declare that the game will be her holiday favorite, charades.
John and Kyle bring more cocoa for all, and Louise gathers up the children who have been tumbling in the snow. Joan sees Trevor, Shelby, Alana, Samuel, Morgan and Alexandra running toward Louise. The older children then act out titles of their favorite stories and songs, while the younger ones laugh in delight.
Joan feels someone at her elbow. It is Desiree, giving her a kleenex. "Desiree, I am so happy watching my babies playing that I didn't even realize I was crying", she smiles through her tears. The sound of footsteps approaching in the now is now heard. Joan and the other Mothers turn and see....
Christine, who is walking slowly through the snow, looking up at the stars above and feeling lost and all alone. Finally, as I bring my eyes back down, I see a figure walking toward me with a little boy on his shoulders, and a little girl and a little boy on each side of him. He stoops down to let the little boy get down, and tears of joy spring to my eyes. It's him! It is really my Toby! He was giving Devon a ride, and Chrislyn and Logan came
along with him. The three of them walk over to the tree, and now I notice all the boxes sitting out there in the snow. Why, of course, they are boxes full of strings of lights. Toby lets each of the little ones get them out of the boxes and takes them ever so gently from each chubby hand. Now he is up on a ladder, stringing all the lights around and around the tree. When he is
done, he steps back and asks Devon to flick the switch to turn them on. The whole forest is bathed in a beautiful white light. The little ones clap their hands with glee and follow Toby back to the little cabin.
I just have to follow him too, I can't help myself. As I get closer though, I smell something wonderful... I look in through the nearly fogged over window to see what is going on inside. Toby is opening the oven door, and oh look! he's cooking the Christmas turkey, that is what I smelled from outside. I'm straining my eyes now, but I can see that he has some of the little ones setting the table; there's Anna and Sherri, Rachel and Christopher Lee. Toby pulls a little bit of stuffing from the turkey and offers it to Kyle for a taste. Kyle nods his head and gives the "okay" sign....
Now Toby picks up Christopher Lee and motions to the other little ones to follow him. What is that he is carrying in his other hand? It looks like a video tape. I can just barely see him putting the tape in, well, what other Christmas story would Toby choose? It is Small One, our favorite, about the little donkey that carried Mary, another mother who lost her son. Toby is tucking all the little ones in their blankets now, and I feel an arm around my waist....
It's Ida, who has come quietly to join all the other angel mommies. My heart is pounding so hard right now, and I am so afraid that I won't see my little Trey. But all of a sudden the door of the cabin swings open, and here comes daddy's little cowboy all dressed in boots, jeans and a cowboy hat. He gives
a quick smile and flashes his beautiful green eyes at me. I want to grab him and hug him, but he darts back inside and slams the door behind him. I go over to the window and stand beside Christine to peer inside. My eyes are so full, there is so much beautiful Christmas scenery inside. As I look around, I see a mantle over a fireplace, all decorated with pine branches. And
I can see Trey's stocking, oh it looks so wonderful, all red with Santa on it, it's the one that Ashley bought for him.
Trey is chasing Logan and Devon around something that looks very familiar, but I can't quite make it out. Then Trey just drops down into it, and now I see that it is the bean bag baby horse that I saw at Cavenders Western Store. And now I can see that he is carefully putting something down on the floor next to the horse. I'm leaning so close to the window that I can barely see.
But I swear I can hear music, what tune is that? Now I am trembling all over, I hear it, the song from Trey's snow globe, it's the snow globe there on the floor, playing "Jesus Loves Me" like so many times in the hospital.
The other two boys grab something from Trey's hands, and the three of them make a mad dash for the door. They hurtle outside together and fall into the snow near the tree. Trey gets up first, brushes the snow off his jeans and picks his hat back up out of the snow. He gestures frantically, and Devon finally hands him the thing that he was hiding behind his back. Trey slowly and carefully wraps it around the base of the tree. I can't control myself, I have to see. I quietly sneak over and peek in.... I don't believe what I see... the tears just won't stop now... it is the Tigger Christmas tree skirt that I bought for my little cowboy....
I turn around and see....
Jamie, who is all out of breath, I am so excited for the chance to see all the angels. But I haven't seen my little guy, has anyone seen Pierce hiding anywhere? A couple of the other angel mommies smile at me and point to where the tree is standing. I can hear some muffled giggling, so I have to go investigate. As I get closer, I hear a familiar tinkling sound, oh my goodness, Pierce is at it with the windchimes again! He always makes them go, so I can hear them and know that he is near me.
There he is, there is Pierce, he has such a mischievous grin on his face! What is this little "angel" up to? Oh, I see, look at the pile of decorations at his feet. I do believe my little boy has been busy "undecorating" the tree. Oh, some of the older ones are going to be so upset. And look at the other "angels" who have been helping Pierce -- I see Devon, Logan, Chrislyn, Ryan, Christopher Lee and Samuel. They must have snuck outside while the video tape was playing.
But here comes Toby, he must have seen Pierce and his little band come back outside. And now I see some of the other older ones coming out to help Toby round them up -- there's Julian and Josh, and Kyle and the two older Christopher's. And now here comes Louise... she picks Pierce up and swings him around so everyone can see his grinning face. He says, "Weezee, Somewhere, pweeeze" Next thing I know, I have tears streaming down my face as they all are singing "Somewhere Out There." For some reason, I look up into the sky and there I see a shooting star, just for me from Pierce, it seems. That star in the sky, shining bright and clear, is you looking down, loving us here.
I feel someone grab onto my hand, holding tightly, and I turn to see...
....Rosemary, who quietly joins us other angel mommies and holds
tightly to Maria's hand as well and tries her best to smile. I haven't felt like being around much lately, but I couldn't help but notice the shining star above and couldn't stay away. I knew in my heart that this somehow had to be a sign from my Louise because of the song I was hearing all the Angels sing. As I hear the "echo" of the words, "someday we'll find one another in that big somewhere out there"...I glance towards the angels to where some have gathered around the campfire and see Louise with Pierce and Chrislyn on her lap and catch her looking towards me with the sparkle in her eye that I remember so well. I feel such a warm feeling inside as she sings the words to me and know that we have finally found each other in this "big somewhere" called "HEAVEN." I can't help the tears as they roll down my cheeks... they are tears of happiness to see her again; she is just as beautiful as I remember her.
It seems all the angels have forgotten the "undecorated" tree Pierce has started and gather around the campfire again. I see such a warm glow coming from the campfire. There are so many angels here and I just feel their love glowing as well. Sitting next to Louise, I see Kyle with his little sister, Sherri, on his lap. And there is Josh, with Anna and Matthew, they are sitting holding hands. As they all finish singing songs, they decide they want Louise to read them a story. Oh, to hear my angel's precious voice again, as she begins to read them "Twas the Night Before Christmas," it's like music to my ears. The little ones start to gather around her as well... I see Ryan, Logan, Rachel, Liam, Trey, Trevor, Toby, the two Christophers, Shelby, Christopher Lee, Alana, and Samuel. John and Julian are bringing pillows and blankets for all of the little angels. Oh no, Devon just threw his pillow at Logan! Here goes Logan throwing both pillows back at the little instigator. Now Louise is clapping her hands and telling them to settle down if they want to hear the rest of the story. The two boys apologize and sit down together, It looks like they are becoming best buddies. Louise finishes the story and tells the little ones that it is time to lay down and get some rest before trying to redecorate the tree again. Maria's Christopher pipes up, "Weezee, can I please have just one more glass of water?"
And now all the little ones start clamoring for something to drink. Louise winks and turns to John and Julian with a twinkle in her eye. She whispers to the two boys, and they run off with big grins on their faces. Julian and Josh return, walking carefully and holding trays. Chrislyn, who was in on the surprise because she was "helping" Louise all afternoon, can't contain herself and leaps off Louise's lap and yells "COOKIES!!!!!" Louise helps Julian and Josh pass out the beautifully decorated angels (of course), snowmen, trees, reindeer, stars and gingerbread boys and girls.
Then Louise looks over to where we are standing and I can read her lips that she is whispering, "Merry Christmas, Mom, I love you" with that whisper of hers that I remember so fondly. I've got tears streaming down my face, tears of joy this time as I whisper back, "I LOVE YOU TOO BABY"...I turn around and give Maria, Christopher's mommy, the biggest hug ever for introducing me to this wonderful group of ladies and allowing me to see Louise again with all these precious little Angels and to see that she continues to be the BIG SISTER and MOMMY that she loved being.
We all have tears of happiness running down our cheeks, as we see this beautiful sight of all our Angels together...
I feel someone put their hand on my shoulder and turn to walk away and see that it is......
Kendra, walking tentatively toward the little cabin in the woods. It is glowing with love, so bright, like a lighthouse in a storm. I walk quicker now, getting closer, I am feeling both nervous and hopeful. Is he here? Is he happy? Will he remember me? OH PLEASE, PLEASE, MY STOMACH IS FULL OF BUTTERFLIES! Then I stop and close my eyes and decide to just follow my heart. All of a sudden I hear bells jingling. I open my eyes and peer toward the sound. I see familiar broad shoulders up on a ladder,
"re-decorating" the tree ... yes, it is my Kenneth, he looks marvelous! His helpers are down in the snow, picking up all the ornaments that Pierce and his little band pulled down off the tree. There's Julian, Louise, Toby, Kyle and Josh, all of them
helping Kenneth do what he loved to do. Now Josh has picked up his star which had gotten pulled down from the top of the tree... he is letting Kenneth put it back up on the treetop. These are truly little angels!
Now Kenneth is getting down from the ladder and leading his group of helpers back to the cottage. He holds the door open so they all can file in. Once they are back in, Kenneth starts cleaning up the dishes from the snack. He always was such a helper. But while he is at the sink, Chrislyn and Rachel come over and pull on his pants leg. They lead him over to where there is still a stack of presents to be opened. Of course, Kenneth just loved to give the presents out!
As he turns to start handing out the presents, he looks up and sees me at the window! He looks right into my face and just smiles. I can feel his love and his happiness. I feel so happy ... and yet so sad all at the same time. I wipe the tears from my eyes and blow him a kiss. He catches it and places his
hand right on his heart. Then he starts softly singing his favorite song, Jingle Bells. All the angels who are not yet sleeping join in, also trying to sing softly. This truly is a night of miracles for all of us.
I wipe my tears and smile, turning to see....
Francine, who looks so lost and alone, comes to join this group of angel mommies. They all hold out their hands to welcome me, I feel like I am finally somewhere that I belong. But how do I find my sweet little angel, Ryan? How will we know each other? I start to just wander around the tree, looking at all of the precious ornaments and feeling the love that is there.
All of a sudden I hear the whoosh whoosh whoosh of sleds coming down the hill. There are a whole bunch of sleds coming down, faster and faster. I look closer and see that on each sled is one of the older angels, each one holding one of the little ones...it looks like it's all boys here... there's Kenneth with Trey, Josh with Pierce, Julian with Christopher Lee, and coming down fastest, I can't believe my eyes, there is Kyle and he is holding my precious little Ryan. I hear him laughing and laughing, what a wondrous sound that is! I hope that Jo hears Kyle's laughter too. I've just got to follow him back up the hill, I can't help myself....
Now I am at the top of the hill and watching Kyle carefully start down the other side of the hill. Oh, I feel as if I am in a dream or something. Of course, anything can happen here, we are looking into Heaven. There at the bottom of the hill, a field of wildflowers! Ryan has thrown off his snowsuit, and I see that he is wearing overalls, just as I always picture him. There he goes! Ryan is running and laughing through the field of wildflowers! I've got tears starting to stream down my face, this is just all too precious. Then Ryan is next to me, and he grabs my little finger and squeezes it tight... he whispers "Mommy, I love you."
Then he is off again, running through the wildflowers, and I hear his laughter as I go back up the hill to join....
Angelique, who is running up the hill because I got excited hearing the other moms talking about the flowers. My angel Nicky just has to be there where flowers are! I finally reach the top of the hill, all out of breath. I don't even have to look down, I hear a rattle, rattle, rattle, and I just know what I am going to see. Now I am holding my breath, and I open my eyes that were
tightly held shut... I see my big little boy with his broad shoulders and sandy blonde hair just shaking and shaking his little Tigger rattle. I do see flowers everywhere, every kind of flower imaginable it seems.
Here comes another little boy joining my Nicky, I do believe that it is Desiree's angel Logan. What are the two of them up to now? Here they come running up toward me, and now I see, they are throwing white rose petals along the path here. Here comes Ryan, too, he wants to help them. Wherever are they trying to lead us? All of us angel mommies are following this path of white roses, along the bottom of the hill, until we finally come to such a special place that it takes my breath away.
It is a little clearing that is completely bathed in white light. I hear the chirping of birds, and I see all the stars out in the wonderful clear sky. But most exciting to me is to see a man who has to be Jesus sitting right down in the snow with all of the angels gathered around him. Look, I see the older angels behind Him bringing the little angels to see Him -- I see Kyle and John with their little sister Sherri, Matthew is there with his sister Anna, here comes Devon with Chrislyn and the two Christophers are with Julian and Josh, Kenneth is bringing Rachel and Trey, Toby is holding hands with Liam and Christopher Lee and Louise is with Pierce and Trevor. Ryan and Logan were here already, after they helped Nicky make the path with the white rose petals. But where is my little angel?
Oh gosh, I hear such wonderful laughter, it just has to be... oh it is! I look again at where Jesus is sitting and such a dream come true, He is bouncing Nicky on His knee! And Nicky is playing with the "Bouncing Tigger" that his daddy wanted to get him for Christmas. What an amazing sight! The other children are starting to crowd around, waiting for their turn, I guess. Nicky gets down so someone else can climb up, and he turns to look at me, I look right into his deep blue eyes and see that he is happy and belongs here. He waves to me and turns back to be with his angel friends. I feel so many emotions that I don't know what to do.
Someone puts their arm around my shoulder and I turn to see...
Daphne, who can't believe what she is seeing. Tears stream down her face as she watches all the mommies with their children and she looks around for Chris. She knows she is late and is afraid that maybe he is gone to bed and she won't get the chance to see him. As she stands watching and looking, she feels the kiss of a freshly fallen snowflake against her cheek, and realizes that it is starting to snow. Chris has always loved snow. Suddenly she hears a giggle from behind her and turns around to see him looking at her with his twinkling eyes and devilish grin. He
sticks out his tongue to catch a snowflake as it falls, and laughs when it lands on his nose instead. Not able to wait any longer Daphne holds out her arms to her baby and he rushes into her embrace. "I love you Chris," she says and tears of happiness stream down her face as he kisses her check and tells her how much he loves her too.
Then he looks up her at and smiles, "Come meet all my friends mommy," he says and takes her by the hand. His chubby hand feels so wonderful inside hers and she clutches it, never wanting to let it go. As he walks toward the little cabin he points to other children and rhymes off the names of his friends. There is Kyle, Chrislyn, Christopher, Christopher Lee, Toby, Louise, Julian and Josh. He leads her over to the cabin and inside she can see other children playing, reading stories and getting ready for bed.
What a wonderful place this is, she thought as she looked down into Chris's happy face and realized how content he looked. No matter how much it might hurt, she knew in her heart that he was happy here, with all his friends. She sat down on the porch steps and held him in her lap, while she watched the other mothers with their children and knew how lucky they were to have these moments. She watched as Maria and Christopher snuggled, Kendra softly sang to Kenneth, Ida playing cowboy with Trey, and as the snow gently fell, she held her little angel tightly, cherishing every minute.
Faintly she heard the rustling of branches on the trees and turned around to see who was coming. It is...
Theresa, who is walking so slowly, I feel as if the world is on my shoulders. But I just had to come here to see if I can catch at least a glimpse of my little angel. I come to the group of angels as they are finishing their visit with the man who appears to be Jesus. I hear such a sweet sounding little cry, oh it just has to be her! One of the bigger boys is picking her up and brushing her off, poor little thing, she must have fallen in the snow. Kyle is the one who picked her up, I see that now. He hands her to Jesus, so she can have her turn.
I can see her sitting there, holding a piece of holly in her chubby little fists. Now look, she is kicking her legs and she turns and looks to where I am standing. Oh, my funny little angel, there she goes, sticking her tongue out at me! Now she blows me a kiss and jumps back down into the snow. She crawls away too fast for any of the other children to catch her right away. Now where could she be going?
I just have to follow Grace, I can't contain my curiosity. She is laughing and turns around to stick her tongue out at me again. Oh, this surely must be Heaven, look at what she is doing now, along with some of the other little ones... there's Devon and Chrislyn and Logan and Ryan... it's like a magical playground here. They are all together having fun on the
merry-go-round.
But Grace is by herself, and I really can't believe my eyes. I know I am seeing this, but it seems like it is a dream somehow. There she goes, whoosh, she is sliding down on moonbeams, just as I imagined her. Now I see that at the bottom of the slide, Grace stops to play with the stars, making them twinkle off and on, off and on, with such a special light. She laughs and sticks her tongue out at me again, and now I know that she feels my love.
I am crying too hard, so I have to go. I turn around to see...
Connie walking towards us with her arms folded, watching her angel with wonder and joy. I am sitting here in such amazement watching my Samuel, going back and forth as Alana is swinging him in the swing. He looks up to see me walking towards him, his eyes are so bright so full of happiness, he must really like this place called heaven. He takes my hand in his little one and guides me to the other mommies and the little angels. Pierce's, Toby's, Rachel's and Grace's mommies are there to greet me, I have never seen so much happiness in my whole life. The tree is beautiful, so many lights.
Samuel proudly shows mommy his part in it all. I am so proud of my little guy, Samuel runs from place to place showing me the many wonders, he shows me Christopher's train, and then shows me where he put his ornament on the tree, how special its right next to Pierce's. All the angels look like they're having a great time, running, laughing and playing and doing the many things they couldn't do. Samuel and I sit to build a snowman together, soon the other children and mommies come to join and soon it becomes a full blown snowball fight. Toby is running after Josh and Julian. Shelby silently sneaks up behind Christopher Lee and dumps a load of snow on him, Morgan and Madelyn. Rachel just sits back laughing at these silly boys.
Of course by now Samuel has hidden behind me being mischievous as Devon and Logan look for him beings he is the one who started this, he knows if he goes out there he's the target, so for now he's just going to hide behind his mommy. Its such a beautiful site to see, smiles everywhere... I start to cry as I see the mommies looking at their angels with such glee. Samuel looks up at me, pulls at my coat sleeve for me to bend down to his level, and he smiles, it's the smile I remember oh so well, and tells me mommy its ok as he wipes away the tears, what an angel, what a sweetie. I feel so blessed to have a chance to share in my angel's first Christmas in heaven.
I look around and see...
Jamie, Hunter's mommy, walking slowly up the hill. I didn't know if I had the strength to come here on my own, so I just had to bring Hunter's brothers, Amos, Tyler and Jakob, with me. I am so hesitant that Desiree comes over to greet me and let me lean on her as we walk. In the "real" world one might not recognize a friend from cyberspace, but no such problem seems to exist here.
I recognize Desiree immediately, and she gives me a big hug, welcoming me to this heavenly playground.
I walk slowly, my heart pounding. I just wonder if Hunter found his way here already, it hasn't been long at all. I'm searching and searching, can he really be here? I see some of the other angels playing on the swings, there's Julian and John and Logan and Devon, and I think I see both Christophers. Kyle is pushing his sister Sherri in a baby swing, while Chrislyn, Rachel and Anna await their turn. Hunter's brothers all start to clap, and Desiree tugs on my sleeve and points. Look, it's another baby swing, and I see that Rosemary's Louise is pushing it. And all wrapped up in the crocheted camouflage blanket that my mom made him is such a tiny little boy, with red hair peeking out from under the blanket. I'm so excited that I can barely stand. My boys pull me along so that we can look more closely. Now I can look into his dark brown eyes and see that it really is my little Hunter. Oh, he is so adorable all dressed in his camo sleeper and matching booties. I see he has something clutched in each of his hands. I peer closer at his hands, they are so perfect! In one he is holding the Christmas stocking I made for
him, I can just see the "H" in his name on it. And in his other hand, I almost don't believe what I am seeing... it's the angel teddy bear that I bought for his viewing. Oh, he is holding up his hands to me, I think I am going to faint.
Louise unbuckles the baby swing, and helps Desiree get Hunter out for me. Desiree hands him to me, and I finally get to hug and nuzzle my little angel boy. I breathe in his perfect baby smell, and I just am so overwhelmed by the love I can feel. I whisper, "I love you, Hunter, and I will be with you soon." Desiree nods to Louise, who comes back to get Hunter. I do not want to give him back, but I do feel a peace that I have not felt in a long time.
Louise wraps him back up in his special blanket, and Desiree and I join hands and turn to join....
Judy, who up until now has kind of felt like a stranger in a strange land. But feeling the love from Desiree and Jamie has helped, and now Kimberly and Brandi take my hands to lead me to this heavenly playground. I have been searching and searching, but I just haven't been able to find my Parker Andrew here at all. But what do I hear? It sounds like some children playing
ball. I have to go look and see what is going on...
As I walk over past the swings, I see what looks like a soccer field. There are a bunch of our angels playing soccer -- there is Julian, John and Matthew on one team, and leading the other team it just has to be, it is!!! It is my Parker Andrew, here he goes, dribbling the ball toward the goal... it is being defended by Daphne's Christopher... Parker head fakes to the left and shoots to the right. He is so excited to see the ball go in the goal, past Christopher's outstretched hands. Parker yells and turns to hug his teammates, Logan, Devon and Maria's Christopher.
It looks as if the game is over, because all of the boys start to head off the field. Parker Andrew turns his sweet little angel face toward me and smiles. He shouts, "Hey mom, follow us! We are going to the garden of the angels!" I am overwhelmed by the love that I feel.
I link hands again with Kimberly and Brandi as we turn to see...
Denise, who just knows that her little baby girl would not be at the soccer game. So where can I find her? My arms simply ache to hold her close and sing the Christmas carols with her and tell Christmas stories to her...
But what do I hear? There is some heavenly music floating in the air, and I recognize that song, just listen -- "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy, when skies are gray..." I am following the voices now, they have just got to lead me to my baby girl, Madelyn.
Oh now I look over near the beautiful Christmas tree, and there I see it, it has got to be the BEST angel band ever! Kyle and Louise are again leading the carolers, and I see some of the little angels singing their hearts out. Here is Matthew and Anna sitting together, Julian, John, Ryan, Logan, Devon with Chrislyn, the two Christophers and Christopher Lee... My heart is racing now, I've just got to find her!
All of a sudden I hear a little girl's voice starting to sing "Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday Dear Jesus" I look over to where a table is set up and see a huge birthday cake on it, with the candles burning bright. My little Madelyn is standing with Toby and Josh, and they are singing happy birthday to our savior. She smiles and blows me a kiss, then continues singing with her new-found angel friends. What a beautiful sight!
The tears are starting, and I feel an arm around my shoulder, it is....
Carla, who just looks so lost. But for some reason, I am drawn to this place, particularly the beautifully decorated Christmas tree. All of a sudden, an ornament comes flying at me. Where in the world did that come from? It lands in a bank of snow, so thankfully it didn't get broken. I pick it up, I see from the back that it is a little boy riding on a sled. When I turn it
over, my breath just catches in my throat... it is for my angel! As plain as day, it really truly does say "Whit"! Oh just wait until I tell Mike, my hubby!
Now I hear giggling, where is that coming from? I'm getting pelted with snowballs too, whatever is going on? Okay, I can see now, the snowballs are coming from behind the tree. I'm going to find out who is playing tricks on me right now! The giggling has now progressed to peals of laughter. I go behind the tree, but there is no one there....
Snow is falling down out of the tree on my head though, so I look up and see a little boy scrambling up the branches as fast as he can. He turns and throws a snowball at me, it misses by a mile. But I would recognize that little face anywhere, it still follows me in my dreams -- it is my little angel, it truly is Whit! This is definitely the best Christmas present I could receive, like a dream come true.
Whit slides back down out of the tree and retrieves the ornament that I had dropped when I recognized him. He gently places it in my hand and whispers, "Merry Christmas, mom, I love you and will always be with you." I am overwhelmed by joy even with the tears streaming down my face.
Some of Whit's little angel friends gather around the tree with him. Look, Rachel is holding up her ornament for us to see, it is a little Elmo figure. And Trey is showing us his ornament that has a cowboy riding on a horse. Chrislyn has a teddy bear ornament, while Nicky's is a Tigger, and it rattles too. Daphne's Christopher has a snowflake ornament, while Maria's
Christopher has a very unique angel that he made out of Legos. Oh, what a wonderful place this is!
I feel an arm around my waist and turn to see...
Darlene, who really can't believe that we are seeing all of these
wondrous sights. I agree with Carla, this is just a dream come true!
And now I see my angel Shannon, being 12 years old now and firstborn, she wants to be the leader. She is dressed in her best Sunday dress all in pink and a white lacy pinafore. She waves to her brothers Freddy and Nelson on earth. She says, "It is so much fun here in Heaven. I have so many friends. I wish you could see how beautiful it is here." She picks up an angel ornament and puts it on the tree. It is brightly colored all decorated with sparkles with her name shining in sequins.
Then Shannon grabs Chrislyn's hand and Trey's hand and yells. "Time for some games! Let's play Follow the Leader!" And there she goes, Shannon is leading the way, like I just knew she would. She skips over to where the snow is untouched, followed by Chrislyn, Trey, Rachel, Nicky, the two Christophers.... and now some of the others join the game... I see Anna with her brother Matthew, Morgan, Christopher Lee, Devon, Logan, Julian and Louise. Shannon lays in the snow and starts making a snow angel. Even though some of our angels had done this earlier, they seem to be having so much fun doing it again.
Shannon sits up and says, "This snow angel is for you, mom, remember I am always your special angel." She blows me a kiss and jumps up to continue being the leader.
The tears are flowing as I see....
Darci, who is looking a little lost and doesn't seem to know where to look to find her little girl. I saw that she was in the Follow the Leader game, but now I can't seem to find her. But I hear laughter and, can it be? It sounds like a puppy barking!
I look toward the sound, and there they are, over in front of the
Christmas tree, what a sight to see! Morgan, wearing her red hiking boots that I gave her for her first birthday, she's reunited with her best friend, her puppy, Abby. The two of them are rolling around together, and I hear Morgan giggling like mad. Now I see that Morgan is holding a Teletubbie ornament,
trying to hang it on the tree, but Abby keeps trying to tug it out of Morgan's hands. Abby is even tugging at Morgan's diaper. just like she always did.
Josh, John and Kyle come over now to try and settle Abby down a bit. Morgan finally is able to hang her ornament on the tree, with the boys holding Abby for her. When she is done, Morgan plops down on her little cloud and cuddles with Abby. Oh, what a happy sight! Chrislyn, Devon and Logan join Morgan, and they take turns petting Abby.
I'm crying tears of joy as I turn around to see....
Kirsty, who wasn't sure that she had the courage to come here and look for her little boy. I have seemed to have trouble finding this place, and I fear that it is too late to see my little Liam. But as I look over to where the angels are still fussing over the dog, Abby, I see one of the older angels, Toby it looks like, carrying a little boy over to see the dog. And what a wonderful sight before my eyes, I see it is my Liam petting Abby and giggling so hard.
Now Kyle picks Liam up and gently places him on the sled. He pulls Liam over to the big Christmas tree, where all of the angels have gathered once again.
Liam has yet to open his Christmas gift that he picked from Julian's basket of presents. His present, still wrapped, is laying in front of the tree. Liam looks right into my eyes, smiles and points from me to the present. Oh my, I believe he wants to open it with me! What a blessed Christmas this is!
I am shaking so hard as I finally get to pick up my little boy and cuddle with him. I look around and see all of the angels waiting to find out what his gift is. And all of the angel mommies are gathered around the tree, breathlessly watching me with my son. I cradle Liam in my arms as we open the gift together, look how cute, it is a baby kangaroo rattle, so appropriate coming from Julian, from Australia. Liam shakes and shakes his new toy, smiling and giggling at everyone.
While I am sitting with Liam, Maria's Christopher goes to the tree and turns on the train that he so carefully set up earlier. Louise, John and Josh pick up the Nativity figures one by one and show them to Liam, but he doesn't show much interest in what they are showing him. But when Devon picks up Jesus in the manger and brings Jesus over, Liam grabs the figure and holds on tightly to it. Josh again reads the story of the birth of Jesus while Liam continues to hold the Jesus figure. When Josh finishes the story, Liam turns and hands Jesus to me. I am quietly crying now.
Liam kisses my cheek and waves "bye bye" as Louise comes over and picks him up off my lap. She takes Liam back over to the sled and sits him back down on it. Kyle pulls him away on the sled, and Liam continues waving as all of the angels follow along.
I look to see...
...the rest of the angel mommies, as we all are gathered together in this wonderful place, this heavenly playground. But now where have all the angels gone off to? We all start walking through the woods, trying to track down our angels.
All of us mommies stop outside the enchanted garden, where our angels could run through the flowers at Christmastime, wishing that we could watch our angels running through the flowers and playing there once again. Desiree leans against the wall, and a stone wiggles loose and falls out of the wall. The hole it left is big enough to crawl through. So that is where they have all gone! The angel mommies look at each other excitedly and crawl
through the secret passage one by one. We are totally filled with joy to be back in the enchanted garden with our angels once again.
The first garden we see is just filled with poppies. We can hear
Rosemary's breath literally catch in her throat, and we all stare at what has to be a miracle. There is Louise, and she is running very fast through this field of poppies, toward an older woman. She yells at the top of her lungs, "Wait up, Grama, we need to go pick some flowers especially for Mom!"
And there he is again, now running through a field of daisies, it's Francine's little boy Ryan. He stops and picks up a bunch of daisies and is joined by Trevor. The two boys run hand in hand, clutching their flowers, toward our group. Ryan runs up to Francine and pushes the daisies into one of her hands and grabs on tight to her other hand. She is just speechless. Trevor runs to Dawn, his mom, pulls her hands down and puts his daisies into
her hands as well. He links his arm in hers. She too is speechless.
Matthew has been picking the daisies too, and he is joined by his sister, Anna, who is holding a single white rose. They join hands and run over to their mom, Joan. She doesn't seem to know whether to take the flowers or grab their hands. The three of them sit down together, hugging each other tightly. Joan has tears of joy streaming down her face. Morgan and her puppy, Abby, are walking together toward Darci, and Morgan is holding a huge bouquet of daisies. Darci leans down to take the daisies and ends up cuddling with both of them.
And now here is another boy who has some daisies, along with some beautiful blue irises. This just has to be Julian. He is skipping along, humming part of a song, it sounds as if it is part of "Something So Strong," his mommy told me that was one of his favorites. Now he starts running and runs right into Sabina's arms. The two of them hug each other, and she has tears running down her face as she tries not to drop the flowers that Julian has handed to her.
Now we see all of the little angels running in the flowers and picking them for their moms. Here comes Josh holding one long stemmed red rose, along with a bouquet of yellow roses. He places them in Monika's arms and grabs her in a big bear hug. She is stunned but is able to hug him back. Liam is sitting
holding a bunch of little yellow roses, and he beckons to Kirsty. She scoops him up, hugging and kissing him, as he puts a flower behind each of her ears. Chrislyn is toddling along with pink and white carnations. She hands them up to Brandi and grabs hold of both of her hands. Brandi is crying but smiling through her tears. Sammy also has a white carnation and some red roses.
He takes Connie's hand and pushes the flowers at her. She takes the flowers and picks him up to give him a hug. Toby is walking purposely toward his mom, Christine, with the biggest bunch of red roses we have ever seen. The two embrace, and Toby places the roses in his mom's arms.
Now we see Devon with a big grin on his face, headed toward Kimberly. What does he have for his mommy, I wonder? Oh my, we all hear his laughter, and then we hear Kimberly laughing as well. The little "angel" has handed her a whole bunch of dandelions! But then he pulls his other hand out from behind his back, and now we see that he has a bouquet of little red roses for his mommy. Kimberly is just so overwhelmed that she picks Devon up, along with the roses. The two of them are just giggling away together, what a wonderful sound!
And here is more laughter, a little girl is skipping along holding a bunch of what looks like big colorful daisies. Little Grace reaches up to her mom, Theresa, and hands her the flowers. She giggles as she whispers in her mom's ear. Theresa straightens up, laughing until tears roll down her cheeks. Kimberly, who is still giggling with Devon, leans over and asks,
"Theresa, what did Grace say that is so funny?" "Oh, Kimberly, she told me that they are not GERBER BABY FOOD, but that they are called GERBERAS." Now all of us angel mommies are laughing together at that one!
Now we see a broad-shouldered young man hurrying along with a fistful of red and yellow roses. Kenneth runs up to Kendra and scoops her up in his arms and gives her a loud, smacking kiss on her cheek. Her eyes are full of tears as Kenneth gently puts her down and hands her the roses. The two stand there with their arms around each other. And here comes a little boy with a soccer ball in one hand and a fistful of mini yellow roses in the other hand. It's Parker Andrew, and he hands both the flowers and the ball to Judy, who giggles along with him as the two embrace.
We also see a little girl in a pink dress, who is walking along with an even smaller girl, and they both are carrying small bouquets of pink roses. The girl in the pink dress has got to be Shannon. She is waving to her mom, Darlene, who is standing along with Shannon's two younger brothers. Shannon runs over and grabs them all in a group hug, handing the flowers to Darlene as they embrace. The smaller girl is Madelyn, and she toddles over to Denise, who picks her up and squeezes her tightly.
Here comes a boy who has flowers trailing behind him as he hurries along. It's Daphne's Christopher and, how appropriate, he has forget-me-nots! He stops in front of Daphne and just hurtles himself into her outstretched arms. There are forget-me-nots all over and around the two of them as they embrace.
Now here is a tiny little girl who is trying desperately not to drop her very special looking flowers. What kind of flower did Rachel get for her mommy? Look, they are the beautiful white poinsettias with green ribbon and pearls that mean so much to Lena. Lena looks as if she is barely breathing and scoops Rachel and the flowers up. Tears of joy are streaming down her face.
Hunter comes running up with a huge wild-looking sunflower and sits down in front of his mommy, Jamie, with the flower. She picks him and his flower up, and sits down to cuddle with him. Just so beautiful to see.... Now here is a little boy who is hiding his flowers behind his back. He walks sideways over to his mom, Carla, so no one can see his surprise for her. Then after he reaches up for a hug, Whit hands his mom a bunch of beautiful black-eyed susans. They hold tightly onto each other. And here comes Kyle with his special flower from his wedding, the calla lily. His brother John follows with yellow roses, as does his sister Sherri. The three of them form a circle around Joeann, and they all have a group hug, handing the flowers to
their mommy.
Here come more white roses, Louise, Nicky, Trey and Logan are holding hands and looking for their mommies. Along with his roses, Logan is also carefully carrying some white lilies. Louise walks up to Rosemary, hands her the flowers and says in a soft voice, "I love you, mom." Rosemary squeezes her tight, as if to never let go. Now Nicky has found Angelique, who picks
him up with the roses and gives him a great big kiss and hug. The little cowboy Trey has found his mommy, and Ida picks him up and hugs him as if never to let go. Logan toddles over to Desiree and starts to hand her the white lilies and white roses. She is so overcome that he almost has to hold her up. The two of
them sit down together, we can just feel their love.
Christopher Lee has been busy picking all sorts of flowers. He comes running over with his sister, Ashley Renee, to where BethAnne is standing. He hands her a beautiful bouquet of red and white roses and baby's breath, while she hands her mommy white wood asters. BethAnne really doesn't seem to know what to do, so her children each grab one of her hands and stand with her, gazing into each other's eyes. Pierce also made his mommy a beautiful bouquet. He presents Jamie with a bouquet of pink sweetheart roses, blue carnations and Stargazer lilies. She sweeps him up into her arms and gives him a big kiss.
My Christopher comes running up to me, smiling his sweet little crooked smile. He gives me a huge bouquet of red roses, which he knows are my favorite. I hug him tightly, with his hair tickling my chin as it always did. I want to stay like this forever, as I am sure all of the angel mommies do. I really never thought that I could feel this kind of peace again. We all join hands and start singing Hark the Herald Angels Sing, and it is so marvelous to hear our voices floating out over the snow together. I could see that each angel is dressed in a flowing white gown with soft feathery wings that have edges tipped in gold. As we continue to sing, each of the angels kisses his or her mom's cheek and whispers, "Merry Christmas, Mom, I love you." Then they ascended one after the other up a magnificent golden staircase, waving to us as we say a tearful good-bye. We all watch as they each disappeared into the clouds above..... "UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN!" the moms call in unison. As each mom turns to leave, we hear each other's whispers, "Until we meet again, our precious angels, until we meet again..."
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