{"id":40523,"date":"2022-12-15T23:49:27","date_gmt":"2022-12-16T04:49:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=40523"},"modified":"2025-09-25T15:37:43","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T19:37:43","slug":"baubles-mcfair_58","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=40523","title":{"rendered":"Baubles (mcfair_58)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Author\u2019s note: Originally, this was to be my offering for Day 16 of the 2022 Advent Calendar.\u00a0 My \u2018hero\u2019 was to be Hop Sing with Roy Coffee as a secondary character.\u00a0 Roy moved right in and took over the story and<\/em> my prompt (he\u2019s got a gun, so I had to let him!), and so I decided this one wouldn\u2019t work and wrote another one with Hop Sing at its center. I hope you enjoy them both.<\/p>\n

Rated G<\/p>\n

Word count: 4121<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Baubles<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It was a very cold and bleak wintry day in Virginia City in the year of the Lord eighteen-hundred-and-sixty-one; so cold and bleak that it elicited a sigh from the lonely man who stood looking out of his office window.\u00a0 Rarely had he seen so much snow in all of his livelong days. \u00a0At least two decades had passed since that kind of snow had come rollin\u2019 down from the Sierras.\u00a0 He\u2019d just returned from wadin\u2019 through it and was plumb tuckered out.\u00a0 \u2018Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail shall keep a man from his appointed rounds\u2019 <\/em>might have originated with those who carried the post.<\/p>\n

It went for lawmen too.<\/p>\n

Roy Coffee wriggled his stockinged toes, hoping to bring some life back to them.\u00a0 He\u2019d given a thought to soakin\u2019 his frost-nipped digits in the cup of hot coffee he held, but decided it would do him more good warmin\u2019 his insides.\u00a0 The heavy snow had driven most everyone in and kept them there.\u00a0 Other than one miserable wreck of a drunk he\u2019d found in a back alley half-froze to death \u2013 who was snorin\u2019 it off in one of his cells right now \u2013 he hadn\u2019t seen a soul, Christian or otherwise.\u00a0 \u2018Course there was another reason for that.\u00a0 It was Christmas eve.\u00a0 Roy dropped the curtain he\u2019d been holdin\u2019 and turned back into the room.<\/p>\n

It was gonna be a lonely one.<\/p>\n

Most Christmas Eves it was all he could do to get his decorations up.\u00a0 Seemed like folks come out of the woodwork to wish their local sheriff a \u201cMerry Christmas\u2019.\u00a0 Roy glanced at his office desk.\u00a0 The heavily marred surface was empty.\u00a0 Generally, by this time of day, it\u2019d be brimful with brightly wrapped boxes and bottles of cheer \u2013 and, if he was lucky, maybe even a fat roasted turkey for his supper.\u00a0 The older man shook his head as he crossed to his desk chair and sat down.<\/p>\n

Weren\u2019t no one <\/em>crazy enough to come to Virginia City tonight. \u00a0Not in this<\/em> weather.<\/p>\n

He s\u2019posed the ones he missed the most were the Cartwrights. Of all the inhabitants here about, they was the ones he thought of as \u2018family\u2019.\u00a0 Weather permittin\u2019, Ben and his boys always come by on Christmas Eve to wish him a happy holiday and spend a few hours shootin\u2019 the breeze.\u00a0 Sometimes, Ben\u2019s boys would regale him with song \u2013 usually, that was Adam\u2019s idea.\u00a0 The lawman chuckled.\u00a0 At one point or another durin\u2019 the visit Little Joe would start shoutin\u2019, and he\u2019d have to grab his keys and let the boy out of the cell them two ornery brothers of his had locked him up in. \u00a0Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe would usually move on then, headin\u2019 for their friends\u2019 houses, or maybe a stop at Sam\u2019s for a glass of the bartender\u2019s famous egg nog.\u00a0 That\u2019s when he and Ben would settle in and get to reminiscin\u2019.\u00a0 Roy ran a finger over his mustache, ticklin\u2019 his nose, and sniffed. \u00a0Reminiscin\u2019 wasn\u2019t much fun when a man was alone.<\/p>\n

In fact, it was downright melancholy.<\/p>\n

Since he spent more time in the jailhouse than he did at his home \u2013 or so it seemed to him \u2013 he usually set his Christmas tree up right here.\u00a0 He had <\/em>the tree, a little green fir near his height and pretty as any filly.\u00a0 It was sitting in the corner.\u00a0 Next to it was the wooden box full of Christmas baubles he meant to decorate it with. \u00a0He\u2019d thought about puttin\u2019 the two together tonight since he didn\u2019t have nothin\u2019 else to do, but somehow the whole dang thing seemed like a waste of time.\u00a0 Wouldn\u2019t be no one in tonight, tomorrow, nor the next<\/em> day neither to see it, not with the snow comin\u2019 down\u2019 like a banshee.<\/p>\n

Looked like Christmas was gonna pass him right <\/em>by this year.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There was another man in Virginia City that night, just as alone and just as discouraged.\u00a0 He\u2019d come to town several days before in a wagon laden with Christmas presents for his family.\u00a0 The place he now called home was far away, so he set out early, taking no chance that he would miss them.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing sighed as he walked to the window of the new building that housed his father, Hop Ling\u2019s, laundry.\u00a0 The old building had burnt down two years before during the riots that followed Alpheus Troy\u2019s evil attempt to kidnap Ben Cartwright\u2019s youngest son.\u00a0 This new one was located not in Chinatown, but in the heart of Virginia City and across from its jail.\u00a0 No white man would choose this place for fear an outlaw might escape and bring them harm.\u00a0 His father did not worry about such things.\u00a0 Like him, Hop Ling believed he was taken care of.\u00a0 Though they kept their ancient ways, both he and his father had come to respect and believe in the white man\u2019s God.\u00a0 This was due to the Cartwrights.\u00a0 Many white men went to church.\u00a0 Most did not live as the Lord Jehovah\u2019s Word called them to live.\u00a0 Ben Cartwright and his sons did.\u00a0 The Asian man glanced at the tinsel and greens hung above the laundry door, and then turned to look at the cr\u00e8che lovingly placed just below the Hop family\u2019s shrine.\u00a0 In China, where he came from, there was no such thing as Christmas.<\/p>\n

Hop Sing thought that was a shame.<\/p>\n

He had hoped to visit with his family and share this joy with them, and then to return to the Ponderosa in time to prepare for Christmas Day.\u00a0 For this reason he had come to town early, so there would be more<\/em> than enough time for his return.\u00a0 How could he have known a white dragon would appear, breathing snow instead of fire; coating everything with its icy breath?\u00a0 The Asian man\u2019s gaze shifted to the piece of paper he\u2019d left lying on his father\u2019s work table.<\/p>\n

How could he guessed that his family would choose such<\/em> a time to take a journey?<\/p>\n

He had arrived to find the door to his father\u2019s laundry locked.\u00a0 Pinned upon that door was a notice that read:<\/p>\n

Hop family no here.<\/em><\/p>\n

Gone to big city San Francisco.\u00a0 See cousin number twenty-one.<\/em><\/p>\n

White man wash own clothes till come back.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Seeing this, he fished in his pocket for the key.\u00a0 Upon opening the door, he stepped in and called out.\u00a0 Perhaps someone had remained behind to watch the shop?<\/p>\n

No one answered.<\/p>\n

He called again and waited.<\/p>\n

He was still <\/em>waiting.<\/p>\n

The wagon he quickly emptied, taking care to guard from the never-ending snow the presents he\u2019d brought for his family, as well as those intended for the Cartwrights\u2019 friends.\u00a0 All sat unopened beside his father\u2019s work table, which was lit by a single oil lamp that cast a cheerless glow.\u00a0 One night came and went, and then another, and now the four men he loved would be sitting down to eat a supper he <\/em>should have prepared.\u00a0 Hop Sing chuckled in spite of the ache in his heart.\u00a0 It was his hope that Mistah Joe had been the cook.\u00a0 There was much the boy had learned of cooking at his knee.\u00a0 Little Joe would know the larder was full of cans of sweet corn, beans, and other vegetables, as well as jars of sweetmeat and fruit that could be opened.\u00a0 He kept it well-stocked for just such a calamity. \u00a0Hop Sing sighed.\u00a0 At least those he loved would not go hungry.<\/p>\n

The Asian man crossed the empty room to the window. He pulled back the curtain and looked out.\u00a0 He too<\/em> was hungry.<\/p>\n

Hungry for company.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roy was at the window again.\u00a0 He chuckled at his stubborn hope.<\/p>\n

Like somethin\u2019 was gonna change!<\/p>\n

He\u2019d just dropped the curtain when something caught his eye that caused him to lift it again.\u00a0 There was a light in the window across the street. \u00a0You couldn\u2019t miss it.\u00a0 The lawman stood stock-still, contemplatin\u2019 what might be goin\u2019 on, and then decided he\u2019d better take a look \u2013 just in case it was somethin\u2019 what shouldn\u2019t <\/em>be goin\u2019 on.\u00a0 Then, without puttin\u2019 on a coat or coverin\u2019 his thinnin\u2019 hair with a hat \u2013 which went a long way toward provin\u2019 he was thick as a boardwalk plank! \u2013 Roy opened the door and stepped onto the porch.\u00a0 Miracle of miracles!\u00a0 At the same time the door of the building opposite opened and a man came out.\u00a0 The snow was blowin\u2019 so hard, he couldn\u2019t see who it was.<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n

He was so desperate for company, he\u2019d have hollered and invited that there outlaw Frank \u2018Pistol Pete\u2019 Eaton over!<\/p>\n

Roy made a broad gesture that he thought said \u2018Come here!\u2019 loud enough. \u00a0The man\u00a0 nodded his head like he understood, but then, instead of startin\u2019 across the street, disappeared back inside the laundry!\u00a0 The lawman scratched his head.\u00a0 Maybe it was one of them there Chinamen what didn\u2019t speak no English come lookin\u2019 for his freshly washed drawers.\u00a0 The older man snorted.\u00a0 If so, he probably wasn\u2019t full of no Christmas cheer neither!\u00a0 A moment later the door opened again and a stout figure came out bundled from head to toe and carryin\u2019 a big sack on his back.\u00a0 Roy kept a keen eye on the man as he stepped off the porch and plowed his way through the thigh-high snow.\u00a0 Even in the middle of town, in a snow like this, a feller could get turned around in a second and disappear.<\/p>\n

By the time they arrived, he could of mistook his unexpected visitor for a snowman!<\/p>\n

The lawman stepped out of the way so the man could enter, and then closed the door behind him.\u00a0 It was warm enough in the jail that the snow he\u2019d picked up along the way started meltin\u2019 right off.\u00a0 Weren\u2019t too soon afore there was a modest-size puddle under his feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowdy, stranger!\u201d Roy exclaimed.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m right glad to see you!\u00a0 Still, I gotta wonder.\u00a0 How come you\u2019re here in Virginia City on Christmas Eve and not sittin\u2019 at home in front of the fire with the wife and kiddies?\u201d<\/p>\n

The man stamped his feet, releasin\u2019 an avalanche of snow that added mightily to the puddle.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t speak until he\u2019d finished peelin\u2019 away all the layers.\u00a0 The first words that come out his mouth told Roy he\u2019d been wrong on all counts.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a Chinaman couldn\u2019t speak English or<\/em> one of Hop Lings\u2019 customers.<\/p>\n

It was Ben Cartwright\u2019s cook, Hop Sing!<\/p>\n

\u201cThings not goin\u2019 the way you expected, eh?\u201d Roy asked in reply to the string of Cantonese.<\/p>\n

The China man blew out an exasperated sigh.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing not expect to be in Virginia City so long!\u00a0 Hop Sing should be home at Ponderosa! \u00a0Come to see Hop family, only Hop family no want to see him.<\/em>\u00a0 They all gone.\u00a0 All<\/em> gone!\u201d\u00a0 The Asian man sighed and his head shook.\u00a0 \u201cHonorable father and mother not wish to be with most humble son.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, hold on, Hop Sing.\u00a0 That just ain\u2019t so.\u00a0 I know for a fact that your pa sent a rider out to the ranch with a message to let you know they was going.\u00a0 I spoke to him myself.\u00a0 That cousin of yours, number twenty, was it? \u00a0\u00a0Well, he come down with the influenza and your Pa wanted to make sure he got to see him\u2026just in case, you know?\u201d\u00a0 The lawman counted up the days on his fingers.\u00a0 \u201cMust have been about a week back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNumber twenty-one cousin.\u00a0 He long-time friend of father, so father have to go.\u00a0 Hop Sing come to town same time.\u00a0 Must be he pass messenger on road.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m right sorry that happened,\u201d he replied.\u00a0 \u201cIt ain\u2019t good to be without family on Christmas Eve.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing looked at him sharply. \u201cMister Roy alone.\u00a0 He not with family.\u00a0 That not good either.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy scratched his head.\u00a0 \u201cWell, I suppose so, but only on account of I ain\u2019t got<\/em> no family in these here parts.\u201d\u00a0 He jerked a thumb over his shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cLessen you count Jake Rider who\u2019s sleepin\u2019 it off back there in a cell.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMister Roy not able to get to his home because of snow?\u201d<\/p>\n

He shrugged.\u00a0 Truth was, he didn\u2019t want<\/em> to go home.\u00a0 It was even lonelier<\/em> than here.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d he replied.<\/p>\n

The Asian man nodded again.\u00a0 Then he beamed.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, neither Mister Roy or Hop Sing be alone!\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hop Sing knew something of Roy Coffee\u2019s story.\u00a0 Over the years he\u2019d overheard bits and pieces when the lawman talked to Mistah Ben.\u00a0 Sheriff Roy had a wife who died many years before.\u00a0 He<\/em> had never married, but he had loved, and so he knew of the pain that time did not take away.\u00a0 Mistah Cartwright and sons invited the lawman to the Ponderosa each Christmas so he would not be alone.\u00a0 Some years he would stay and this made everyone happy.\u00a0 This year all of his deputies were gone and sheriff had to turn down Mistah Ben\u2019s invitation.\u00a0 He could not leave the town with no one to keep watch.\u00a0 The Asian man glanced at the lawman who had gone to stand by the window.\u00a0 He understood this man.\u00a0 There were things to wish and things to want.<\/p>\n

And there was duty.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy you not trim your tree?\u201d he asked suddenly.<\/p>\n

Mister Roy turned to look at him \u2013 and then glanced at the tree.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t seem no reason too. With this storm, weren\u2019t no one gonna see it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing here to see it now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man stared at him.\u00a0 Then he laughed.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, I guess you are.\u00a0 You like trimmin\u2019 trees?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing no get to trim tree whether he like or no.\u00a0 Mistah Ben\u2019s sons fight over who gets to do so.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cUsually it number three son who win.\u201d<\/p>\n

A smile brightened the lawman\u2019s face.\u00a0 \u201cWithout cheatin\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

The Asian man grinned as well.\u00a0 \u201cThat Christmas secret.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy motioned toward the sack Hop Sing had carried through the snow.\u00a0 \u201cYou gonna tell me what you got in there?\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing shook his head. \u201cNo can tell yet.\u00a0 Tree come first.\u00a0 Need Christmas tree to put present under.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff\u2019s eyes lit up.\u00a0 \u201cYou got a present in there for me?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst decorate tree,\u201d he replied.\u00a0 \u201cThen maybe Sheriff Roy find out.\u201d<\/p>\n

The older man\u2019s gaze returned to the wooden box.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing wondered what was in this box that held such mystery?\u00a0 \u201cMister Roy have reason he not want to open box and get out decorations?\u201d<\/p>\n

The sheriff shrugged as a light sparked in his eye that might have been a tear.<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess it\u2019s okay,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cNow that I ain\u2019t alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roy lifted the box from the floor and placed it on his desk, and then reverently laid a hand on its worn lid.\u00a0 Hop Sing followed close behind.\u00a0 The Asian man looked over his shoulder while he worked the latch and opened it.\u00a0 Most of what lay inside was just plain old baubles.\u00a0 His wife wasn\u2019t one for fancy things and she always made sure their tree was right and proper in case the parson came by for a visit.\u00a0 Fact is, she made most of the ornaments herself.\u00a0 Over time some had fallen to pieces.\u00a0 Gingerbread men and women made a right good Christmas feast for a mouse! \u00a0There was only one left, and that was what he pulled out first and handed to Hop Sing.<\/p>\n

The Asian man sighed as he took it.\u00a0 \u201cMistah Hoss always asks for gingerbread men on Christmas day.\u00a0 Not there to make them for him this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe he made \u2018em himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

The horrified look Hop Sing gave him made him laugh and laugh and laugh.<\/p>\n

Once he\u2019d stopped snortin\u2019, Roy drew out the next item \u2013 a set of fancy tinsel stars \u2013 and handed them to the other man.\u00a0 The missus thought they was acceptable since Jesus had a star and, after all, a sheriff wore one too!\u00a0 What followed after that was the usual strings of wooden beads, a couple of prune chimney sweeps, and a trio of orange baskets with jingle bells tucked inside.\u00a0 The tussie-mussies the missus had made looked a mite tattered, but that Hop Sing, he had a knack.\u00a0 He made them fancy paper cones with their paper flowers look elegant enough any woman would have been proud to have one hangin\u2019 off her arm!\u00a0 Roy bit his lip as he checked the box.\u00a0 There was only one bauble left.\u00a0 He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Ben\u2019s cook wasn\u2019t lookin\u2019 and put the lid down.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy Mister Roy close box?\u00a0 Hop Sing see something inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dang!<\/p>\n

\u201cIt ain\u2019t nothin\u2019,\u201d he said, reaching for the latch.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat sheriff mean \u2018nothing\u2019?\u00a0 It \u2018something\u2019.\u00a0 Hop Sing see it shine in light.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy closed his eyes and sighed.\u00a0 \u2018Well, old girl,\u2019 he thought.\u00a0 \u2018I guess you aren\u2019t gonna let me get by without I use it.\u2019<\/p>\n

The lawman opened the box again.\u00a0 On its rough bottom lay one last Christmas bauble \u2013 an exquisite string of hand-blown glass beads.\u00a0 They was old when he bought them.\u00a0 The man what sold them to him told him they was made in Germany in the forties.\u00a0 Each bead was about a quarter-inch in size and was mouth-blown from a hollow tube of glass and then \u201csilvered\u201d on the inside so it gleamed with an inner fire.\u00a0 Some of the beads were painted as solid colors.\u00a0 Others had dots and stripes, and a few were wire-wrapped.<\/p>\n

Roy held them in his hands, but made no move to put them on the tree.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The friend of his employer remained still.\u00a0 He held the strand of glass beads and looked upon them as if they were a treasure of surpassing value.\u00a0 Hop Sing wished now he had not pressed the older man to open the box again and draw them out.<\/p>\n

He recognized a sacred moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou must forgive this one,\u201d he said softly. \u201cI did not know.\u201d<\/p>\n

The lawman sniffed.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s okay,\u201d Roy said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s just, well, these beads ain\u2019t seen the light of day for quite a few years.\u201d<\/p>\n

The string of glass beads was curious to him.\u00a0 Missy Cartwright had been very fond of them and had a great many, most of which still decorated the Ponderosa\u2019s Christmas tree.\u00a0 Sheriff Roy held what appeared to be only a part<\/em> of a strand; long enough to grace the neck of the tree, but far too short to ring its belly or skirt.<\/p>\n

The sheriff\u2019s finger traced a red bead as he asked, \u201cI bet you\u2019re wonderin\u2019 what\u2019s so special about these this here string of glass beads, ain\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d he replied honestly.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing cannot help but wonder what meaning is of Mister Roy\u2019s extraordinary beads.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cExtraordinary?\u00a0 That\u2019s a fine word.\u201d\u00a0 His voice was soft; his smile, sad.\u00a0 \u201cThese here beads have a story, Hop Sing.\u00a0 They was meant to ring a tree, but that ain\u2019t where they landed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWould Mistah Roy honor Hop Sing with this story of his extraordinary beads?\u201d<\/p>\n

The Asian man watched the friend of his employer cross to the tree.\u00a0 The lawman contemplated it for a moment before taking hold of the pretty fir and shifting it into the light.\u00a0 Then he reached up as far as he could and placed the garland near the top of the tree.<\/p>\n

A second later Hop Sing heard the distinct \u2018click\u2019 of a clasp.<\/p>\n

Mister Roy wiped his nose again.\u00a0 Then he turned and nodded at the sack he\u2019d brought.\u00a0 \u201cYou happen to have a bottle of Christmas \u2018cheer\u2019 in that?\u201d<\/p>\n

He did, and it was only after they had opened the bottle of James E. Pepper 100 proof bourbon whiskey Ben Cartwright had sent his friend as a Christmas gift \u2013 and shared a glass or two \u2013 that Roy Coffee began to talk.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was back in eighteen-thirty I met the missus, only she wasn\u2019t \u2018the missus\u2019 yet.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled.\u00a0 \u201cI was kind of wild back then, a young man sewin\u2019 his oats, if you know what I mean?\u201d\u00a0 Hop Sing nodded, though he had always wondered what \u2018oats\u2019 had to do with such a thing.\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cNow, the missus?\u201d\u00a0 Sheriff Roy took a sip of the whiskey and savored the fire on his tongue.\u00a0 \u201cShe was as prim and proper as they came.\u00a0 Carried her Bible with her near everywhere.\u00a0 Fact is, she didn\u2019t want nothin\u2019 to do with me at first.\u00a0 I had to \u2018mend my ways\u2019, as the preacher likes to say, before she\u2019d even say \u2018how\u2019d you do\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 The sheriff looked over rim of his cup at him.\u00a0 \u201cNothin\u2019 law-breakin\u2019, you understand?\u00a0 Just a young man havin\u2019 a little fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike Mistah Little Joe?\u201d Hop Sing asked, barely masking his smile.<\/p>\n

Roy chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cNow that you mention it\u2026.\u00a0 Yeah, I was kind of like that.\u00a0 Anyhow, I cleaned up my act right fast.\u00a0 Matter of fact, that was when I first started thinkin\u2019 about the law as a profession.\u00a0 Finally, I done good enough to make up for the bad she thought I\u2019d done, and when I got down on one knee and asked her to marry me, she said \u2018yes\u2019 instead of smackin\u2019 me with her parasol.\u201d\u00a0 The sheriff glanced at the tree.\u00a0 \u201cWe were married on Christmas Eve?\u00a0 Did you know that?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo.\u00a0 Hop Sing did not know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, we were.\u00a0 That first year, we didn\u2019t have much.\u00a0 Nor the second neither.\u00a0 \u2018Course, on account of the way she believed, she didn\u2019t want much.\u00a0 Christmas was about goin\u2019 to church, she told me.\u00a0 Nothin\u2019 else.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled and took another sip.\u00a0 \u201cWhen the missus got a little older, she let me get a gift for her, but it had to be practical.\u201d\u00a0 His gaze returned to the tree.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch beads from Germany are not practical.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy snorted.\u00a0 \u201cThey sure ain\u2019t!\u00a0 My wife was hoppin\u2019 mad when she unwrapped them.\u00a0 Told \u00a0me plain old popcorn and cranberries would do, and ordered me to return them to the store and get my money back!\u201d\u00a0 He chuckled. \u00a0\u201cEven if I could of, I wouldn\u2019t have done it.\u00a0 So I had to find some practical use for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat when Mister Roy take beads to jeweler and have clasp added?\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man nodded.\u00a0 \u201cI can see her still, standin\u2019 in the parlor, glarin\u2019 at me with them little glass beads ringin\u2019 her neck.\u201d\u00a0 He chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cShe was mad as a wet hen, but she sure<\/em> did look pretty!\u201d<\/p>\n

Hop Sing was enthralled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat Missus Coffee do next?\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheriff Roy took another swig.\u00a0 \u201cAt first, I thought she was gonna taken them off and throw them at me.\u00a0 So I took her to a mirror right fast and showed her how the spark from those beads caught in her eyes and lit up her whole face.\u201d\u00a0 He paused.\u00a0 \u201cEvery year after that, \u2018til I lost her, she\u2019d pull that strand of glass beads out of the bauble box and put them around her neck and we\u2019d laugh and dance and\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bereaved man wiped away a tear.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonorable sheriff not want to remember what makes him sad.\u201d\u00a0 Hop Sing rose and bowed deeply.\u00a0 \u201cThis one apologizes for prying.\u00a0 Not right to make him do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other man put his glass down.\u00a0 He stared at it for a moment and then looked right at him.\u00a0 \u201cYou know, Hop Sing, I might of thought that to begin with, but I don\u2019t anymore.\u00a0 If you hadn\u2019t of come, I never would have opened that box and, well, I would have missed seein\u2019 her again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHop Sing thank Mistah Roy.\u00a0 He too see his \u2018missus\u2019, through the sheriff\u2019s eyes.\u201d\u00a0 The Asian man crossed to the tree and looked up at the garland.\u00a0 \u201cHe see her love of her husband \u00a0in her glass beads.\u201d\u00a0 The Asian man turned back to look at the man behind the desk.\u00a0 \u201cHop Sing think maybe there very<\/em> good reason Sing family go to San Francisco.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roy rose and came to stand beside him.\u00a0 The sheriff handed him his glass and then raised his own.<\/p>\n

To the tune of a crystal clear \u2018clink\u2019, Roy Coffee replied, \u201cI don\u2019t think so, Hop Sing.\u00a0 I know.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

END<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tags: Christmas, Holiday<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/g><\/svg><\/i> \"Loading\"<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Summary: A barren tree and a string of glass beads bring two lonely men together on Christmas Eve.
\nRated G
\nWord count: 4121<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10058,"featured_media":35466,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-full-width-post.php","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1012,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-roy-coffee","category-short-stories","wpcat-1012-id","wpcat-8-id"],"a3_pvc":{"activated":true,"total_views":646,"today_views":1},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Tree-Candles-Ornament-by-Prawny-from-Pixabay.png?fit=564%2C640&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":40550,"url":"https:\/\/bonanzabrand.info\/library\/?p=40550","url_meta":{"origin":40523,"position":0},"title":"The Broken Cord (by McFair_58)","author":"mcfair_58","date":"December 25, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Summary: A tie that binds is broken. 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