Summary:  Ben’s granddaughter, Lizzy gives her grandfather a special Christmas gift. This story touches upon the importance of family, remembering those who have passed and those that cannot be with us. Just a short story for the Holiday Season. Enjoy!

Rating:  K  (1,780 words)

The Christmas Gift

Adam Cartwright watched as his daughter, Lizzy, gingerly handed her grandfather his Christmas present. She had been secretly working for months on this special gift and now the moment had come for her to reveal her handiwork. Every family member in the room had contributed and her own father spent many an hour reliving past memories to help find what she needed. Ben Cartwright’s grandchildren sat at his feet watching in anticipation. Lizzy’s heart skipped a beat in apprehension. Would he like it? Would he accept it? In a matter of moments the truth would be known. She bowed her head and silently waited.

Ben Cartwright opened the box and separated the tissue. His eyes carefully scanned his family before he averted them back to what had just been revealed. There was a moment of complete silence and then Ben’s aging hands lifted a beautiful quilt from the box. There were soft utterances of approval as he began opening it up for all to see. Adam watched his father intently. He could tell that he had not taken mind to the details of the quilt and thought only of it as a handmade item from his granddaughter. Lizzy sheepishly raised her head to seek approval. Ben looked down upon her with a twinkle in his eye.

“You are one talented young lady,” he said to her. Then he bent down to give her a kiss on the cheek. His granddaughter smiled and softly heaved a sigh of relief.

“I hope you don’t mind that we helped ourselves to a few things in your chest, grandfather.”

At these words, Ben’s expression instantly changed. He glanced over at his oldest son in puzzlement.

“Perhaps you should look closer at your gift, Pa,” Adam suggested with a sly smile.

Ben’s dark eyes looked downward once more. Again silence filled the room. At first, Ben’s face showed no emotion but soon realization set in as his eyes fell upon the first square. It was made with an all white fabric that had begun to yellow with age. There were neatly decorated flowers stitched all around the edge. Ben’s eyes began to water as he fondly remembered his first wife.

“Elizabeth always had this handkerchief tucked neatly under her right sleeve,” he softly said. “I remember her teasing me that it was simply there to wipe away the sea air from my cheek before she kissed me.”

The room erupted in soft laughter.

The next square was very vibrant in color, made of reds and greens. There was a hand stitched message written in Swedish upon it, “Ingenting under solen är beständigt.”

Ben softly translated the message for all, “Nothing beneath the sun is lasting.”

Then he rubbed his hands against the words as if to digest the deeper meaning. Adam could tell that his father was struggling.

He softly spoke out, “Inger had such a positive outlook on life. She lived every moment as if it would be her last. This was her favorite Swedish saying.”

A moment later, Lizzy leaned forward and took her Grandpa’s hand, placing it gently on the third square. It was made from the finest fabric and lace. Ben recognized it immediately as the favorite dress of his third wife, Marie. He reflected for a moment and then surprised everyone by letting out a deep chuckle. “Do you remember, Adam, the first time she wore this?”

There was a twinkle in Adam’s eye as he simply nodded and shared a private memory with his father. Lizzy silently surveyed the two most important men in her life.

“I knew when father so willingly gave it to me that this dress had a story to tell,” she matter-of-factly stated. Then she gave her father a teasing glance before turning her attention towards her grandfather. “Grandpa please share the story,” she politely requested.

Ben smiled down at her and then looked knowingly at his son. “I believe your father should be the story teller.” All eyes turned to the man leaning against a nearby chair. He waited a long moment to build the suspense and then with little persuasion he told a brief rendition of the tale.

“Well, Marie and Pa had been married about 3 months and to be honest, I wasn’t that fond of her at first. I guess I was missing Inger, who I considered to be my true mother and I felt I owed it her not to let someone else take her place. The more she was good to me the more I tried to make her life miserable. The only problem was that I was making my own life more miserable in the process. Pa kept a firm hand and there were many a time I found myself being led out to the barn for a stern talking to.”

“Well, you may have been miserable, Adam, but I’d have to say that your writing greatly improved during that time,” Ben chortled.

Adam snickered. “Yes, I did write her many an apology note for my behavior. The only problem was that she would not accept it, however, unless I presented it to her in duplicate. Twenty copies to be exact.”

The room suddenly filled with laughter.

“Well, to make a long story short, one day I came home from school and there she was dressed in this beautiful dress. Her hair was just shining and she looked like she was ready to step out on the dance floor. I remember her asking me how my day was, and I just ignored her comment. She then asked me how I liked her new dress and, well, it brought everything out in the open. I walked over to her and grabbed the first thing I could get my hands on, Pa’s brandy.

I opened the cork and splattered her dress with the dark liquid. Then I shouted at her, ‘You’re not my mother and you’ll never be… Inger is my mother… Inger is my mother.’ Then I ran up to my room.”

There was a lull of silence. Ben could easily see that Adam was reliving every moment.

“When I came home that evening, I found Marie in our bedroom crying. She retold what had happened and I felt my anger rise. Marie was adamant, however, about me not getting involved. She escorted me to the front door and forced me to take a long walk.”

Ben paused to look over at his son. “Adam. I never learned what happened between you and her, but from that day forward you accepted Marie.”

Adam knowingly nodded. “She came into my room and found me crying on my bed. I knew I had done wrong and was so ashamed and worried what you would do to me when you found out. I remember her sitting herself down on the edge of my bed for quite some time; neither of us saying a word. Then she soothingly placed her hand on my back and began to rub it gently. ‘Adam… life gives us brief moments with another… but remember that in those brief moments we are making memories…memories that will last a life time. Hold on to those memories about your mother, Adam. Cherish them. I have no desire to interfere or take them away.’ She then arose and walked quietly out the door.’”

Adam’s eyes locked with Ben’s. “From that day forward we started making new memories…happy ones.”

The moment was suddenly interrupted by Ben’s impatient great granddaughter, Rebecca. “What do the other squares represent?”

Ben looked down at the quilt and realized immediately the next three squares. The first was Little Joe’s favorite green jacket. Lizzy had taken special care to include the collar flap that laid over the shoulder piece. Next to it was Hoss’s brown vest and finally Adam’s yellow jacket. Ben felt a wave of emotion as he remembered all three boys riding along side of him in the saddle. He felt his hands begin to shake and then the tears began to cascade down his cheeks.
This disturbed Rebecca. “Grandpa, don’t cry. Gifts are supposed to make you happy.”

It was such an innocent statement that it made Ben chuckle.

He then reached down and gingerly caressed her cheek. “Don’t worry child, I can assure you they are happy tears.” Then he mustered a believable smile.

The evening quickly passed as each member of the Cartwright family eagerly told of their contribution to the quilt. When all was said and done, Ben slowly arose and attempted to wrap the memory quilt around him. Adam watched as his father struggled; his hands battling arthritis. He was not that sure on his feet anymore and his once tall stature seemed shrunken. When Ben made another failed attempt, Adam quietly arose and walked over behind him. He then wrapped the quilt comfortably around his shoulders and assisted him back to his seat. He could tell his father was mildly annoyed with his need for assistance, so he quickly redirected his thoughts. “Pa, isn’t it about time for the Cartwright Christmas tradition?”

All the children cheered at the mention of this cherished event. Ben looked up at his son knowingly. He shot him a meaningful glare and then his face softened.

“I believe you are right, Adam. This audience has certainly been patient with all this reminiscing.”

Adam patted his father on the back and returned to his seat.

Ben turned to all the grandchildren and great grandchildren before him. “Now who should I pick to be the one to go get it?”

All the children raised their hands eagerly. Ben turned his attention towards Rebecca, addressing her with a simple, “If you please…”

The young girl arose quickly and walked over to her great grandfather’s bookshelf. She carefully pulled out a well worn book and brought it over to Ben, who positioned the book on his lap.

Ben Cartwright’s eyes scanned the room as he lovingly absorbed his family. He took a deep breath and opened to the first page. There was silence and then an all too familiar voice began the story.

“Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house
Not a creature was stirring not even a mouse…”

Author Note: Story segment taken from “A Visit from St. Nicholas” or what is more commonly known as “Twas the Night Before Christmas” by Clement Clarke Moore.