them to our kids. We realized how much they appreciated the tablecloths when we overheard our middle daugh- ter respond to a friend’s question, “What is your favorite Christmas present?” with: “A tablecloth!” Now adults with homes
of their own, they’ve con- tinued the tradition of hav- ing family and friends sign and date their tablecloths, and then they embroider the signatures. Three of the four grandparents are now deceased, and having their signatures on the table- cloths makes them a special treasure.
Carol Brudnicki Community Lutheran Church, Enfield, N.H.
A gift of welcome It was Christmas 1999 and our fam- ily had recently emigrated from Mexico. I was 7 years old and con- fused by all of the changes taking place. We had never spent a Christ- mas in Indiana and had never seen snow. Due to limited funds, we had no festive decorations nor big plans for our first American Christmas. That is, until local people began to bless my family with gifts. A church brought box after box of used clothing, decorations, toys, etc., and I felt like a king. Coming from a humble background, I had never had so many gifts —it didn’t even matter that they were used. We also received bags of school sup- plies, clothing and coloring books from my elementary school. I was extremely happy. Through these gifts we were able to decorate our home with Christmas cheer and have a joyous time remembering the birth of Christ.
When I think about it now, I know it wasn’t the objects we received that
22 The Lutheran •
www.thelutheran.org
David Rojas, a student at Valparaiso [Ind.] University and a member of St. Paul Lutheran Church, Frankfort, Ind., remembers with fondness the gift of welcome he and his family received when emigrating from Mexico.
made that time joyous. It was the gift of having people care, love and welcome us.
David Rojas St. Paul Lutheran Church, Frankfort, Ind.
A father’s love It was Christmas Eve 1933 in Riga, Latvia, when my dad, according to the tradition, closed the door to our guest room so in secrecy he could decorate the Christmas tree and place the gifts under the tree.
The great DESIGN PICS
moment arrived. The singing of Christmas car- ols, the visit of Santa Claus (our
upstairs neighbor, an opera singer), the recitation of memorized Bible verses and then, of course, the open- ing of the gifts. For me, there was
the best gift ever and the great- est surprise—a big sailboat (in my memory at least 3 feet long) with seven white sails and most delicate attention to every detail. Dad spent more than a year building it with a friend’s help. I was so overwhelmed by the gift that it still looms big in my memory after 78 years. In summer 1934 I proudly and happily played with the sailboat at the Baltic Beach in Latvia. An older friend begged to play with it. How could I say no to my good friend? He took the sailboat, which was truly seaworthy, deeper into the water. Suddenly the string, by which he held the boat, slid out of his hands and the sailboat got away, never to be seen again. My heart broke. I couldn’t be consoled until my dad got home. His heart was broken too. But he was able to embrace and assure me that he was with me and for me in my brokenness and that his own broken heart would see me through it all. This was the best gift and best memory of true love.
Alfred Kaupins St. Mark Lutheran Church, Marion, Iowa
The heart of Christmas “Silent Night” was playing in the background as my husband and I sat in the waiting room of the pediatric ward of the Hershey [Pa.] Medical Center on Dec. 8, 1977. Our 1-year- old, Mark, was undergoing heart sur- gery to correct transposition of the great vessels, a congenital defect. The surgeon’s words kept going through my mind: “Eighty-five percent of babies make it through this operation, but that isn’t going to mean a thing to you if yours is one who doesn’t.”
I read magazines and tried not to think about what was happening in
GREGG GEARHART
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