Christmas Eve is such a wonderful day when you have children.
It is full of anticipation and excitement thinking of the special visitor who will be calling later.
From early morning my youngest had acted like the town crier, “One more day”, was her mantra.
All the presents were wrapped and under the tree.
Much feeling and guessing had gone on, with some even assuring us they definitely knew what was inside.
The house had been tidied to a degree rarely seen.
In fact my daughter remarked “the last time the house looked like this was when Nana was coming to stay”.
The turkey was awaiting stuffing, the desserts were made and the ham steeping.
All systems were ready to go.
As Christmas songs blasted out on the radio, there was a great buzz all around the house.
However for a time I felt detached.
My mind couldn’t help but wander back to this day last year.
My young friend was coming out of hospital.
He had been diagnosed with leukemia just a few weeks.
He’d begun chemo, had his first bone marrow biopsy,
and spent the first of many weeks in hospital.
He was not yet very sick, and still had a full head of hair.
I recall going to see him and having a quiet word with his mum.
I raised the possibility of him losing his hair over Christmas.
If he did maybe he might prefer to shave it?
A conversation so at odds with the season.
A conversation just five weeks earlier we could never have imagined.
I remember hearing On St Stephens day that he decided to shave his hair.
It never got a chance to grow back.
My mind continued to wander through the year,
despite my best efforts to think of something else.
So I decided, to go up to my room and take the five minutes I needed,
to think of my young friend and to mourn and to miss him.
When I returned to the mayhem of my kitchen my husband came to me.
He began to speak and then stopped.
“What?”, I said.
“Well, he said reluctantly, I don’t know where this came from but I just found it here”.
He was holding a Christmas card in his hand.
I opened it and couldn’t believe my eyes. 
It was the Christmas card my young buddy had given me last year.
“Happy Christmas Tric,
Thank you for all your help”.
I have no idea where it came from. Why it was in the kitchen or who put it there?
But the timing was perfect.
Yes, my warrior friend,
I will have a “Happy Christmas”,
And I dearly hope that where ever you are,
you too will be having all the fun you loved to have when you were here.
photo credit: manmadepants via photopin cc
photo credit: Tatters:) via photopin cc
My thoughts on a page. 
Wow – gotta love the universe for moments like that! Have a happy Christmas!
Thank you. It sent me into a bit of a spin alright as I’m a renowned cynic! Whichever it was it was a lovely if poignant surprise. Thanks for reading.
Maybe it’s a reminder that whilst thinking of those who are no longer with you, you must live the moment with those who are with you. Hugs to you, Tric. Merry Christmas xxx
Yes I have no idea. I was delighted to get it, but wonder still, why we didn’t notice it over the last few days sitting there? Why did we not find it when we were cleaning up? But yes I am enjoying those who are here, but my friend was calling today and I was so aware of her pain, and all our loss, especially theirs.
what a wonderful gift..my sister-in-law is in the midst fighting leukemia and so many strange things have happened that can’t be coincidental – I believe in the universe and the angels that come with it – Merry Christmas..
Best wishes to your sister in law. My young friend was just very unlucky.
I don’t know what to believe but it was a very different thing to happen, and not too easily explained. I’ll keep a look out for more angels!
I believe. I believe in the goodness of him and his desire to give you comfort. 🙂
Merry Christmas Tric.
That is a lovely thought. More lovely is the fact his mom was on her way to my house!!! Who knows but it gave us all comfort and tears.
🙂 He did indeed give you both comfort. 🙂 Chills of joy.
A Christmas miracle delivered just for you. He wants you to have a Merry Christmas too.
It’s a lovely thought. Thank you. As I just told Coleen, his mom was on her way to my house so I was able to tell her too.
Have a lovely Christmas. x
Ve Agree with mewhoami. I have had a few things such as this happen to me that I can’t explain, but they comfort me. Have a very special
Thank you so much. I hope you’d a lovely Christmas. This did bring me comfort as it did his mom.
How beautiful!! It feels to me as a sign that he is with you, connecting and wanting you to know that he is present, not far away at all….
Hope you had a good Christmas Lucia. I am beginning to come around to this being an extraordinary occurrence and as such I am delighted it happened
Has anything like this happened to you? I have had quite a few comments and I am thinking of doing a post asking this as I know his mom is searching for sights of her boy.
Oh yes, I’ve had many wonderful synchronicities, clear signs and messages! I need to do another post about them – I did write recently about the way Elizabeth connects with me through certain songs. There are so many stories!
Spooky !
Have a lovely Xmas, tric. Hope it is a day filled with happiness and laughter for you and your family and not tinged with too much sadness at the thought of the missing ‘warrior’
Thank you Duncan. I’d a lovely Christmas if a little lonely in places but still with a young santa girl it had to have it’s magic moments.
Looking forward to getting back to writing when I can.
beautiful miracle for sure, tric
I’m beginning to think it might have been. Hope you had a great few days. x
I firmly believe that those who are gone to the next place can still reach out to help us here. I have experienced it, and I trust it. What a lovely gift from your young warrior, reminding you to keep on embracing life. Merry Christmas, Tric!
Thank you. Now I have had time to process it I have to agree it is unexplainable.
I hope you had a lovely Christmas.
Your posts, and the memory of others who are gone, made me appreciate every second with my children even more than usual.
I hope that you found some joy, and some peace, in the holiday too. Your young friend and his Mom were both on my mind. Sending the best to all of you!
Special things happen at Christmas – just a part of the miracle of Christmas. Hope you are having a blessed Christmas.
Thank you. I’d a lovely few days and in this country we all as good as stay on holiday until Monday 6th Jan so plenty still to come.
The card was a lovely connection to my young friend. To actually see his writing on a page and to be able to tell his mom was great.
He hasn’t left you Tric. He’s letting you know that you are just as special to him now as you were then.
Have a blessed Christmas season with your children and family. 🙂
Thanks for such a lovely comment. We all miss him but it was a lovely connection. It would be lovely to think he was letting us know he was near, especially his mom.
Hope you had a lovely Christmas.
Wow…a great story. I really believe it was no coincidence. I had an almost identical thing happen last week and you have to start to wonder about if any thing really is just a coincidence and if we are ignoring signs that are right in front of us. Merry Christmas 🙂
Thank you. It still has me scratching my head, most especially as I don’t believe any or this sort of thing usually, but it was a very strange thing to happen. I am beginning to enjoy the possibility
I don’t believe in coincidences as such. When my dad died a nun brought a red rose that my dad had cut in her garden the previous day for Our Lady’s altar. My mum, unbeknownst to us, had asked for a red rose to let her know he was ok. A red rose was very symbolic to both of them. When the nun presented my mum with it there were tears but there was comfort. All of us were comforted by it.
Such things have happened over the years on a number of occasions. I think your young friend was reaching out to let you know he’s OK. I sincerely believe those who have gone recognise the need for comfort for those left behind.
This is beautiful, Tric. A real blessing. x
Wow. I am hoping to do a post asking others to share anything they might have experienced. I wonder would you mind me sharing this coincidence of yours?
I think it would be something my friend would be very interested in as she is of course wondering where her young boy is.
Thank you so much for this.
Feel free to share it. The thing is a few months later my husband’s mother died and I told him to ask for a ‘message’ so that he would know his mum was ok. But not to tell anyone. He asked for someone to give him a book of his mum’s as she was always reading. A few days later he got a phone call from his sister to ask if he could take a pile of their mum’s library books back to the library. She never bought any. Always went to the library. Hubby was amazed that he got his answer. It’s a lovely sort of comfort.
And if your friend felt able to ask for some message that would be meaningful to her I’m sure she would be answered.
It’s we who need the comfort. Not them. They are more than fine. x