Santa’s sleigh heads north

Tucked snugly behind the mini-van’s seat, the electric car for children held brightly-wrapped Christmas packages. Behind it we had wedged a package of colorful pillowcase dresses. Used Christian books and literature in brown boxes filled the back of the van from ceiling to floor. In the nooks and crannies formed by the excess we tucked in our suitcases, my husband’s tools and my usual assortment of entertainment for the road: computer, books to read, snacks and needlework. Loaded like Santa’s sleigh, we checked our list twice and headed north to relatives prepared for many stops along the way to deliver packages and surprises.
First, we visited my son in St. Louis. I delivered packages. My husband brought his skills for house repairs. He and our youngest son worked on one project after another while I had a tea party with the granddaughter, Sophie. Her mom brought out the tea dishes and let us make Rice Krispy Treats together. Working with short folks necessitated a lower level for the work, so I sat down on the floor with the pan of melted marshmallows and cereal. Seeing us working at his level, Sam, a toddler, joined us.
Momma handed big wooden spoons to Sophie and Sam. We sat on the floor as we stirred and pressed it all together. Then, we sat at the child’s wooden table while Sophie poured tea (okay, water) and served treats. Sam just grinned and ate anything we handed him.
Later I helped Sophie use the Tag Reader to explore the computerized “The Cat in the Hat.” The kid absorbed the book. I know, because afterward her mother posted the following on Facebook:
On this rainy morning Sophie said, “Mom, is the Cat in the Hat real?”
“He is a story character.”
“I wish he was real and that you would go away, and I could be Sally and Sam be Nick.”
But, I digress. We still had more to unload from our sleigh. We made an early morning stop in Butler, Ill., where we left more than a dozen boxes filled with the books and Sunday School literature folks have given us to take to Love Packages. This organization fills shipping containers with tons of books, magazines and devotionals to send to English readers in Third World countries. Some goes to pastors, some to libraries and the rest to churches. It always feels good to see the materials recycled rather than dumped into the landfill, and I am always blessed when I read how the materials helped someone half a world away.
Our official reason for traveling came next: a small family reunion with my husband’s brothers and sisters as well as any of their descendants available. I pulled out the photo book of our trip to Alaska and the souvenirs we had purchased to share our vacation fun with family. We weren’t the only ones who came with family photos. We swapped books and comments, knowing the time and thought necessary to put the books together.
Later that day I proudly pulled out the packages of pillowcase dresses to be shipped to Forgotten Children Worldwide. After sewing one dress a week this past year, I was happy to have my niece look at the neatly packaged dresses and declare it a “great ministry.” The dresses will be shipped with other clothing that she and her husband help collect for orphans and vulnerable children from countries such as their adopted son’s homeland of Ethiopia.
Just as proudly, my husband unloaded the electric car he spent days repairing, rebuilding, repainting and re-wiring after he found it abandoned at a dumpster. He designated this toy for his great-grandchildren and guests to enjoy. I think he just wishes he could drive it, but since he is too big he must enjoy it vicariously.
Late Saturday night, I pulled out the last of the packages: Christmas gifts and birthday gifts for family members we may not see again until next year. The sacks looked a bit rumpled from having tumbled around between books and boxes, but the gifts triggered a few smiles anyway.
The last departure from the van came after I flew home. My husband gathered up his tools and carried them into my son’s house. They spent the next nine or 10 days working together repairing, installing and fixing odds and ends. Well, my husband helped. He mostly ran errands and demonstrated while our son worked. “Once he understood what to do, he actually did it faster and better than I could,” my aging repairman admitted.
That was the last delivery: another lesson in home maintenance.
Having accomplished that, Santa and his sleigh returned home to his workshop to prepare for another trip.