A Christmas Tale — Jan Weeks

Christmas is a time for miracles, and in each of the stories in "A Christmas Tale and Other Stories," wondrous things happen. A blizzard, a wreck, and two Samaritans show an estranged mother the way back to her children and to faith. Beggars outside an upscale L.A. church and a young girl teach the congregation the true meaning of Christmas. A girl encounters an angelic messenger after wishing on an heirloom ornament and learns her mother's secret, a secret that has shaped both their lives. Ever-burning Christmas lights annoy Mrs. Emory's neighbor, until the woman learns that Mrs. Emory's son has been MIA for forty years. On Christmas Eve, both learn of the son's death-and the eternality of the spirit. An unemployed laborer finds a fat wallet and a gray kitten during a snow storm. The money will make a memorable Christmas and a better life for his two children, but can he live with his conscience? A reticent legal secretary who attends the firm's annual Christmas party discovers, with the help of a magical corsage, how her life has impacted people in the past and the present, but also learns that the future is hers to shape. A Scrooge-like CPA is pressed into service as an emergency foster parent just before Christmas. His two small charges prove that money is secondary to kindness and love. An out-of-work drifter robbed and abandoned by a trucker is rescued by a passing Samaritan. When a disabled child disappears, he and the townsfolk search through a blizzard to find the boy. A mysterious voice leads him to the boy; his faith is restored. An old man confined to a nursing home is visited by guides who, through revisiting his past, show him that a hardened heart can be softened by empathy and unconditional love. An upwardly mobile executive reconnects with her long-lost sister and children when she volunteers at a soup kitchen on Thanksgiving. When her sister contracts a potentially fatal infection, she realizes that family and love mean more than possessions. A widow takes her frustration and fear out on her three children, who must find a way to bring Mom back to them. "The magic of Christmas glimmers and shines in this vivid collection from writer Jan Weeks." -- Rick Hamlin, executive editor, Guideposts magazine "If you love the holidays, you'll enjoy Jan Week's A Christmas Tale. Miracles, magic, and marvel fill each chapter with sweetness tastier than Santa's candy canes. When it's dreary, cold, and snowy, these shining star stories warm your winter." -- Cynthia Brian, New York Times best- selling author, TV/Radio personality/ Founder, Be the Star You Are (r) charity. "Scrooges beware. Jan Weeks' collection of Christmas stories will melt even the hardest of hearts. Grab a cup of cocoa, snuggle into this book, and rediscover your holiday spirit." -- Lisa Earle McLeod, author of Finding Grace When You Can't Even Find Clean Underwear and The Triangle of Truth."