O'Neal Christmas Story

As promised, I wanted to share this with you guys. This story was supposed to be part of Faith's 12 Days of Christmas Link up...but better late than never? I just wanted to give you a little insight to the gals lives with the O'Neals and I added in the two younger boys since the O'Neals took them in too :D

“What a meal!” Paul said, sinking into his easy chair. Nadia, Megan, and Kenny crowded around his chair. The girls sat on his knees and Kenny sat on the arm of the chair.

               “Now what?” Nadia asked.

               “What do you mean?” Paul returned.

               “We have to do something fun now,” Nadia replied. “We should do something fun every Christmas.”

               Lillian and Oakley snuggled together in her rocking chair, “We could start a tradition of sorts.”

               “How about a fun Christmas story, Pa?” Faith prodded.

               Paul chuckled, “I have plenty of stories, but I have another idea. My family used to do this each year when I was a boy. Let’s each go around and mention a gift or something special we received—whether it was for Christmas or not—and say why it was so special.”

               “Can I start?” Nadia spun around to look at Paul. At Paul’s nod, Nadia barreled into her story. “Last year was our first Christmas as a family....”

               Lillian and Paul shared a smile at the memory of the past Christmas.

               “Ma and Pa bought me a pair of brand new shoes! I never had my very own new pair of shoes before. That was my favorite gift ever!”

               Lynn sat up from between the twins, “I remember we had a stray puppy come to our house one day. Belle and Albert said we could keep her unless we found her owner. 
Taking care of Flower was the first chore I ever had ... back when I was excited for chores.”

               This evoked chuckles from the group.

               “Papa began a tradition of buying us boys our first pocket knife,” Isaac spoke up from the hearth. “Albert was eight when he got his first and so was Gideon. But by the time I was eight, Papa had passed away. I was really hoping for a pocket knife, but I wasn’t expecting one. But on the morning of my birthday, I woke up to find a brand-new pocket knife sitting on my nightstand.” 

               Isaac couldn’t help the smile that split his face. “Albert and Gideon had been doing odd jobs and had scrimped and saved up their money for months to buy me that knife from the trader shop. I was so surprised and excited. I’ll never forget that.”

               “I remember that,” Faith said. “Albert was so worried he wouldn’t get the money in time, but he worked hard and came up with just enough, just in time.”

               “Danielle has something to share,” Lillian announced

               Danielle, sitting at Lillian’s feet, looked up in surprise. “What?!”

               “I see you smiling down there,” Lillian replied with an arched eyebrow. “You thought of a memory.”

               Danielle sighed but complied. “Well ... when I was a kid, Mama had these hairbows that I was so jealous of. They were so bright and colorful. I always asked to wear them but Mama would just say ‘when you’re older, darling. When you’re older.’ I gave up after weeks of pestering, but on Christmas morning, I found one of the hairbows in my stocking! I was so excited that day. That hairbow meant so much to me.”

               Cassandra nudged Danielle with her foot, “You softy.”

               Danielle rolled her eyes, “Okay, since Ma volunteered me, it’s her turn to share what her favorite gift is.”

               “Well, when I was ten, my parents bought me a horse. He was black and white and a spirited beauty. I named him Prince and I loved him. My brother, sister, and I all would go riding together and I have some of my favorite memories from then.”

               “How long did you have him?” Elsie asked.

               “I had him until I married Paul. We needed work horses, not show horses. I sold Prince and we used that money to buy Midnight and Copper.”

               “What about you, Pa?” Nadia squirmed on Paul’s lap. “What was your favorite gift?”

               “Well, I’ve had many gifts of all shapes and sizes over the years. But last year’s gift was probably my favorite of all time,” Paul remarked.

               “I knew the axe was a good gift!” Danielle grinned.

               “No, not the axe. You girls.”

               The girls grew quiet, except Megan. “What do you mean, us?”

               “Lillian and I always wanted a big family. And it seemed that wasn’t God’s plan for us. It was hard for us accept. When Lillian was pregnant with Oakley, we were both excited, thrilled! But deep down inside, I knew Lillian wouldn’t be able to have another child. I knew that Oakley would be the only child we would have. I prayed and asked God to help me accept this. I was upset, but I didn’t want to seem ungrateful for Oakley.

“That next morning, I went into town and Mr. Trombley mentioned that the sheriff had been finding homes for these sisters and there was still one girl that he had.” Paul shook his head and laughed. “God just literally dropped you girls right in front of me. It was so perfectly planned out. If I had been in town earlier, all you girls would’ve been together, and to be perfectly honest, I wouldn’t have wanted to adopt all you girls at once. At that point, I wouldn’t have felt capable to take you all in. But God eased us into it. Danielle was our first taste of you Hansen girls. And believe me, she was a handful—” Paul winked at the little girls who were laughing as Danielle rolled her eyes, “—but we grew to love her and couldn’t imagine life without her. Then when we saw all you girls ... we knew we wanted you all to be a part of our lives.”

Lillian watched Paul with tears in her eyes. Paul didn’t often share his feelings like this. He was a loud man, but never shared a lot about himself.

“God gave me a lovely and beautiful wife,” Paul said with a smile at his wife. “And a healthy, great son. And I was prepared to be content with that although I wanted a much bigger family. But then God blessed me with nine girls and two more boys. And that’s my favorite gift.”

No one spoke after Paul finished. A log on the fire shifted, creating a sharp pop and crackle as sparks flew up the chimney.

“Well...” Nadia spoke up, “you and Ma are one of my favorite gifts too, Pa.”

Paul and Lillian both laughed at Nadia’s touching remark.

“Danni,” Faith called, “are you crying?”

Everyone turned to look at Danielle who was attempting to discreetly wipe away a tear. “What? No! I don’t cry!”

“Mhm,” Lillian murmured, bending forward to kiss the top of Danielle’s head.

“I couldn’t help but tear up either,” Cassandra said, defending Danielle. “That meant a lot, Pa. And I know I speak for all of us when I say that we are so grateful for you and Ma. We loved our old life with Mama and Papa, but after God took them home, we couldn’t do it by ourselves. There’s no place I’d rather be right now, than here with all of you.”

“Agreed,” Elsie sighed contentedly.

The group fell to silence again, just enjoying the moment. Though it was nearly past the youngest girls’ bedtime, no one wanted this night to end.

“Can you tell us a story now, Pa?” Megan broke the silence.

“Honey, it’s bedtime,” Lillian protested.

“But it’s Christmas!” Kenny pleaded. “Can’t we stay up just this once?”

“ ‘Just this once,’ ” Lillian shook her head. “If I give in tonight, you’ll want me to give in every night.”

As if they had planned it, all the siblings begged, “Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!”

“Looks like you’re out numbered,” Paul chuckled.

“Oh, all right ... but seriously, only this once!”

“Tell us a story from your mining days,” Isaac called out before anyone else could request a story topic.

“Have you heard the one about me meeting Judd Peterson?” Paul asked.

“No!” came the chorus.

“Well, when I started working for the Rosenthal Mining Company, I needed someone to show me the ropes of the work. This wily old fellow came up to me and he...”

Lillian smiled as she watched the children hang onto every word of Paul’s. Years ago, she had hardly dared to dream of such perfect Christmases and now here she was, living the dream she had told herself to never dream of.

Thank-you, Lord. You know I don’t deserve all this ... but I sure do appreciate it. 

As part of the 12 Days of Christmas Blog Series that Faith P organized, I wrote a special little almost 2,000 word Hansen Christmas story :) I hope you all enjoy. This story will give you a little sneak peek into the Hansen sisters' lives with their parents, Zachariah and Alice.

A Hansen Christmas Story

            Belle settled into the rocking chair and closed her eyes. It had been a long, busy day and Belle was grateful to finally sit down and relax.

            Suddenly, a little body scrambled onto her lap and grabbed her around the neck.

            Belle’s eyes flew open to behold Nadia sitting mere inches from her face. “Sweetheart, what is it?”

            “Can you tell us a story?” Nadia’s big blue eyes stared into Belle’s own blue eyes.

            “What kind of story?”

            “A Christmas story! It’s almost Christmas time and I want to hear how you celebrated Christmas with Papa and Mama when you were a little girl.”

            Belle smiled faintly at the thought of Papa and Mama. They had had many wonderful Christmases together. Her heart ached a bit; thinking of another Christmas that they would be separated.

            “Will you tell us one?” Nadia waited impatiently.

            “Let me think of a good one.”

            Upon hearing Belle’s answer, the rest of the sisters crowded into the living room and settled down on the furniture. Even Paul and Lillian joined the girls; eager to hear Belle’s story. Once everyone found a seat, Belle began her story.

            “My favorite Christmas was the year 1881. I was seven years old…Mama was due to give birth to Kenny any day. It snowed so much that Christmas Eve! Outside it was snowing so hard that it turned into a blizzard. Mama and Papa were worried about the terrible weather, so Albert and I wanted to do something special for them…”

~~~

            Zachariah Hansen pulled at his mustache and looked out the window. The snow was laying and growing deeper and deeper by the hour. He was worried that the snow would prevent him from getting to the midwife, should his very pregnant wife go into labor soon.

            “I want to see the pretty snow!” five-year-old Danielle tugged on her father’s pant leg.

            “Darling, don’t bother your father,” Alice Hansen scolded. She bustled over to her husband and daughter.

            “Of course, you can see the pretty snow,” Zachariah replied, hushing his wife. He scooped Danielle into his arms and let her peer out the window.

            “It’s so sparkly!” Danielle pressed her face against the window.

            “It is, isn’t it? God sure made snow a beautiful thing.” Zachariah set Danielle down and sent her to play with her siblings.

“I just didn’t want her to bother you at a time like this,” Alice whispered, resting a hand on her husband’s shoulder. She gently pushed her fingers back and forth, massaging his shoulder. “I know you don’t like all this snow.”

Zachariah looked out the window again. “I don’t want to get snowed in. I need to be able to get to the barn and to the firewood.”

“We’ll be alright,” Alice soothed, kissing his cheek. “God will take care of us. He always has.”

“You’re right, dear. I wish I had faith like you…” Zachariah gently touched his wife’s swollen stomach. “What if you go into labor, though? How will I get to the midwife?”

“Don’t worry about me!”

“Go rest. You must be in pain.”

“I’m used to the pain,” Alice protested. “I feel fine.”

“You go upstairs and lay down before supper. Please, it’ll ease my mind to know you’re resting.”

Alice complied to her husband’s wishes and mounted the stairs to her bedroom.

            Zachariah moved to the doorway and put on his coat and hat. He reached up on the shelf and pulled down a coil of rope. He tied one end of the rope around his waist and the rest he clutched in his hand. With his remaining hand, he lit the lantern. Albert and Belle walked over to their father and watched him with curiosity.

            “What are you doing, Papa?” Belle asked.

            “I’m going to the barn. It’s snowing so hard that pretty soon, we won’t be able to see the barn from the house.”

            Albert’s eyes widened. “But the barn is only a few yards away!”

            “Exactly. I’m going to string this rope from the house to the barn so you and I can get through to the barn to take care of the animals. I better lock up the barn too while I’m at it.” Zachariah put his hand on the doorknob. “You two keep an eye on your siblings while I’m away.”

            “Yes, sir.” Albert and Belle watched their father brave the winter winds and head for the barn.

            “Papa’s upset,” Belle remarked.

            “He is,” Albert agreed.

            “Let’s do something nice for him!”

            “Like what?”

            “Well…tomorrow is Christmas day. We could get him a gift.”

            “Where are we going to get a gift?” Albert pointed out.

            

            “We will make him one. We can make Mama a gift too. She’s been extra tired with the baby.”

            “What will we make?”

            “You could make Papa a feather pencil like Mr. Wilbur showed you. Papa is always writing stuff down.”

            “Hey, that’s a good idea. We still have leftover turkey feathers from the turkey he shot. I’ll get to work on that right now.”

            “But what should I make Mama?” Belle seemed unsure what to do. “She needs something special too.”

            Albert snapped his fingers, “You could make her a cover for her Bible. Her Bible is really worn but if you made a cover out of some of our old rags, it will protect it.”

            “Alright. I’ll check the rag bin and see what’s in there.”

            Belle hurried to Alice’s rag bin and sorted through the materials. She found enough material to make a cover for the old brown Bible that Alice read out of every day. Belle sat down on her mama’s rocking chair where she could keep an eye on Cassandra, Danielle, the twins, Gideon, and Hannah, and took the sewing kit. Belle was only seven but Alice had taught her basic sewing skills. Belle figured she knew enough to make a book cover.

            Cassandra sat at Belle’s feet, watching her older sister sew. “Can’t I make Mama a gift too?”

            Danielle stood behind Cassandra. “Yeah. I wanna make Papa something too.”

            Belle thought a moment, “Why don’t you draw cards for Mama and Papa? I can write Merry Christmas on it and you girls can draw pictures.”

            “I love to draw!” Danielle squealed.

            “I’ll get the paper and pencils,” Cassandra ran off to fetch the card materials.

            Belle met Cassandra and Danielle at the kitchen table. She took her time and neatly wrote Merry Christmas on the front of the cards and left her sisters to draw pictures everywhere else. Belle sat back on the rocking chair to finish sewing the Bible cover.

            Albert clattered down the stairs and maneuvered through his siblings to show Belle the feather pencil he had constructed for Zachariah. He had split the feather quill and stuffed the pencil into the quill and tied it off so the feather remained attached to the top of the pencil.

            “It looks great,” Belle grinned, “Papa will love it.”

            Albert smiled at Belle’s praise and took a rag from the rag bin and carefully wrapped his homemade gift in the rag and set it under the Christmas tree.

            Belle moved to the kitchen table and left her youngest siblings with Albert. Cassandra and Danielle were cleaning up the table and taking their cards to the Christmas tree. Belle praised their work and sat down at the table to finish her own gift. Making the Bible cover was much harder than she had anticipated. She fought at the material with her needle and struggled to get the material to come together how she envisioned.

            She was so intent on her work that she didn’t notice Alice entering the room.

Alice stepped up behind her daughter and kissed the side of her head. “What are you working on, my beauty?”

Belle jumped in surprise and quick tried to hide her work. “Mama! You’re not supposed to be up yet!”

Alice cocked her head, “If I wasn’t up now, supper wouldn’t be ready on time.”

Belle looked to the clock in dismay.

“What were you working on?”

“Nothing.” Belle shoved her sewing under the table.

“You were very busy to be working on nothing,” Alice persisted, sitting beside her daughter.

Belle looked down at the fabric in her hands. Oh, how badly she wanted to make her mama a special gift for this Christmas! She tried so hard but it ended up not being what she wanted.

“May I see?”

Belle burst into tears. “I was trying to make you a special Christmas gift but I ruined it!”

“You were making me a gift?” Alice whispered, obviously very touched by the gesture.

“Albert, Cassandra, Danielle, and I wanted to make you and Papa something for Christmas. You have been really tired recently with the baby almost here and Papa has been worried about this blizzard. I wanted to make you a cover for your Bible.”

“Oh, sweetheart,” Alice pulled Belle into her arms and hugged her tightly. “That is so sweet of you to think of your Papa and me.”

Belle buried her head in her mother’s shoulder. “But I ruined your gift!”

Alice pulled back and examined her daughter's work. “You didn’t ruin it. You did a great job. I love it.”

“But it isn’t that good.”

“There’s a thing or two I could help you fix,” Alice offered. “But this Bible cover will always remind me that you took time to make me a special gift when I didn’t expect one. It shows me that you love and care for me. That makes it special to me.”

Belle wiped away the tears and smiled at Alice. She handed the Bible cover over to her mother. “Merry Christmas, Mama.”

“Merry Christmas, my beautiful girl.”

~~~

            Belle ended the story and the only sound that could be heard was the pop of wood cracking in the fireplace.

            Danielle was the first to break the silence. “I remember making that card…”

            Cassandra brushed away a tear, “I miss Mama and Papa.”

            Belle set Nadia down on the floor and rose to go to her two sisters. Being so close in age, she, Cassandra, and Danielle fought many times, but Belle loved her sisters dearly and she knew exactly how they were feeling right now.

            Belle sat between them on the couch and slipped one arm around each girl. Danielle and Cassandra leaned into their sister and Belle held them close.

            Nadia stepped up to her three oldest sisters, watching them cry silently. “I’m sorry…I didn’t think it was a sad story.”

            “Come on, Nadia, dear,” Lillian intervened. “I think we should get ready for bed.”

            “But, Belle—”

            “She’ll come say goodnight soon,” Lillian promised.

            Lillian took the girls into their bedroom to help them get ready for bed while Paul went to put Oakley in his cradle. The O'Neals realized the three oldest girls needed some time by themselves.

            Cassandra blew her nose. “I just…I wonder what they would think of us now...”

            “Mama and Papa would be so proud of you both,” Belle whispered, kissing each sister on the head. “And they would be glad that the O’Neals are looking after us and glad that you two are very helpful to Lillian and Paul with the chores. They’d both be pleased with how you’re good examples for the little girls. They’d be proud of everything, I’m sure.”

            “I miss them both…it hurts a lot sometimes.” Danielle took a shaky breath. “It’s the little things you miss the most. That Christmas wasn’t real exciting but…the look on Papa’s face when I gave him his card…I’ll never ever forget that.”

            Belle squeezed Danielle’s shoulder. “I know…our parents were saints…God surely blessed us with remarkable parents.”

            “He did indeed,” Cassandra agreed.

            “And now He’d given us great adoptive parents,” Danielle added.

            Belle glanced at Danielle and hesitated a moment before she slowly nodded her head. “You’re right; He has.”

Joy to the World!

As part of the 12 Days of Christmas Blog Link-Up hosted by Faith P, I am writing this post about my favorite Christmas hymn. If you haven't already, please check out these other blogs and their Christmas posts!!

It is very, very difficult for me to pick ONE favorite song. I usually divide it into certain categories to make it easier...but usually I still end up with multiple favorites. I just looooove music so much. However, when it comes to Christmas Hymns, "Joy to the World" is definitely my favorite (with a few close seconds of course. There are few Christmas songs I don't like.)

I researched some history on "Joy to the World" so share with you guys. "Joy to the World" was written by Isaac Watts and based on Psalm 98 which I have below:

1 O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.

2 The Lord hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.

3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

4 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

5 Sing unto the Lord with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.

6 With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King.

7 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

8 Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together

9 Before the Lord; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.

I think you'll be able to spot some words in there that correlate with the verses in "Joy to the World". This song was published in 1767 and was actually written as a song about Jesus' Second Coming, not His Birth! However, for reasons that I don't know of, this song has become a popular Christmas hymn.

I don't know why this is my favorite Christmas hymn but it has been for as long as I can remember. It is one of the first songs that I learned all the harmony parts to (For any musical people out there. I learned soprano, alto, tenor, and even the bass--I just sing up an octave). I just think the music for it is just so much fun to sing. It's peppy and exciting and joyful! And the harmonies are great. I especially love the soprano/alto harmonies on "Let every heart prepare Him room"

Two years, during the Christmas season at our church, I wrote the upcoming paragraph after a Sunday morning service. The advantages of being in choir is that you can hear all the different harmonies! This paragraph describes my obsession with music and singing and how much I love the song. (The people I mention are actually people who attend my church but I just changed their names for privacy reasons :)

"We started singing Christmas songs now!!!!! Choir opener was "Joy to the World" and I sang some tenor and then eventually switched to alto and bass. We sang all the verses with the congregation. Oh my...Mr. Evans was pumping! I know that's a weird word but it kinda describes it. He was rumbling along and then he would "pump" up (kinda like how organists play the organ) to a higher note (more of a baritone note. Not a tenor note) but it was soooooooooooo good. His voice is awesome. I could hear Nicole and Nadia singing out the melody and Mrs. Evans' clear soprano a tad. I loved it." 

"Joy to the World" is just such an exciting and joyous song! When I sing it, I can't help but smile away as we lift our voices in praise to our Lord of Lords and King of Kings!