December is the busiest time of
the year. Everyone's busy preparing for the holidays and
continuing family traditions. Has it ever crossed your mind,
as to how many really stop and think what Christmas is all
about? Are we teaching our children the true meaning of
Christmas or how many gifts need to be bought? If we have
taught our children the true meaning of Christmas, what we've
instilled in them will be carried into generations to come. I
like to see families create traditions all year long.
Afterall, the original gift to all of us here on earth, was
given from His heart. For through our hearts, one single gift
of kindness, can touch an endless amount of hearts
forever.
This is a story about a child
that saw the importance of giving and never thought about
giving up. Some may think a child isn't old enough to carry
enough wisdom to teach us all a lesson in living. But I've
learned a heart grows from life's many challenges and
sometimes a child's challenges can be far greater than some
adults. We met a little girl seven years ago, during one of my
daughter's occasional hospital stays. Her name was Beth and
she was my daughter's room mate for a week. Beth was a very
happy girl despite her medical problems she was facing. Her
long blonde curls always seemed to bounce with her smile. The
girls got to know each other well and had become good friends.
On the pediatric floor of the hospital, we saw many seriously
ill children. It was so sad, even though my daughter had an
uncurable kidney disease and not a very good chance of living
to see old age herself. We always saw many children with all
kinds of cancer, and sadly enough Beth was one of those
children. She was doing two weeks of chemo and radiation. I
was amazed at her will and determination to never give up
despite how very sick her treatments made her. She was always
concerned about my daughter and the other children with cancer
she grew to know over her many hospital stays.
My daughter's IV treatments were
done after a week and I was happy to finally bring her home.
We were awaiting the final discharge orders when Beth appeared
from the other side of the curtain that separated their beds.
She said, "I want you to have this. I know you need a new
kidney, so keep this angel pin with you till you get better.
She will watch over you so you smile all over. My friend, John
gave this to me to watch over me, but it's time for this angel
to watch over you. When you get your new kidney and smile, you
can give this angel to someone that needs her too. I'm done
reading my book so here's my bookmark that has a poem on it
called, Don't Quit!, I know it by heart anyhow." My daughter
thanked her and the girls exchanged hugs and big smiles. I
knew, we may never see Beth again, but we never forgot the
gift she gave from her heart that day. During that year, we
found out Beth has passed away. It was so sad to know such a
beautiful little girl was no longer bouncing smiles to
everyone she would meet. Her sincere kindness will stay with
us forever.
We kept that angel for six more
years. My daughter had gone beyond what medical journals had
studied and expected from her disease. Was it the angel
watching over her or pure luck? My daughter ended up on kidney
dialysis for over a year, and one month after almost loosing
her, a kidney became available and she received a transplant.
My heart tells me, an angel upstairs was watching with a
loving smile. My daughter had kept that angel pin and now she
felt it was time to give it to someone who needed watched over
till they could smile again. She gave it to an elderly man
trying to overcome the damage from heart problems and
undergoing extensive therapy. His family has informed us, that
when he returns home he wants to give the angel to someone he
knows suffering from a brain tumor.
How many families and hearts
this angel has touched no one knows for sure.
But all it took was one single
gift of kindness, that has and will touch an endless amount of
hearts forever.
So this Christmas season, look
around and see that gift that can't be bought. Create a
tradition with your children or maybe someone you love. Make
someone's day and do the unexpected, let a friend know you
care, or greet a stranger with a warm smile. Give the gift
that keeps on giving. It's open twenty-four hours a day, three
hundred and sixty-five days a year, it's a gift from your
heart. Afterall, isn't that what Christmas is all
about?
