‘No silencio eu Te encontro.’
In silence I find You.
In silence I find You.
In silence I find You.
While thinking on these words and listening to a song I started wondering what it meant. In silence I find You.
‘From far away it looks like any old Christmas in Saimsville.
You can hear the children’s squealing and peals of laughter as they play in the snow, building snowmen and starting snow fights, none of them minding the cold . . . probably because they know inside their homes around the cozy fire is a plate of yummy sugar cookies and mugs of steaming hot cocoa. All around town the sweet smell peppermint and cinnamon wafts through the air mingling with the cheery strains of “Joy to the World” and “Dashing Through the Snow”. Parents, teachers, students, cousins, aunts, and uncles run around town with one thought in mind: where can I find the perfect Christmas gift? The streets and neighborhoods are lit up with brilliant decorations. Everywhere you go you find cheery voices, bright eyes, laughter and love.
You smile happily. Tis the season to be jolly, falalalal--Wait! What’s this? You peer closer. A little house in a far corner of Saimsville is not lit up. Now that you see it, it is glaringly obvious. You look disdainfully at it. It looks so shameful amidst the glowing lights and beautiful decorations of the town. Oh well. As you were singing: fa-lalalalalala, la, la.
Larry Kurtz sat at his table, looking over his bare house. It was a quiet night. Quiet and cold. Just like the night he had said goodbye to his wife of 49 years. It had been two months till their 50th when they got the news: she was sick, with only a few weeks to live. But she had embraced it, her faith in God enabling her to get through, and even enjoy, the last few days of her life on earth. Larry cherished every moment they had spent together. God had blessed them with 49 years of pure joy. Sure, there were hard time- like when they couldn’t quite make ends meet and they were scraping the bottom of the money jar, but God had always provided. Larry remembered a particularly hard December. It was Christmas Eve and their son was saying his nightly prayers. . .
“And please, dear God, help mommy to find a turkey for Christmas.” Larry remembered seeing the tears in his wife’s eyes as she kissed their son good night. It was the only thing their son had asked for that year- not for cars and Christmas trees and lights and toys like all of his friends had. All he asked for was a turkey. That night Larry knelt down and prayed, asking God to somehow provide them with a turkey for their little boy. If that’s all he got, Larry knew it would be enough to prove to his son they had not been forgotten.
Early next morning Larry awoke to a knock at his door. When he opened it their stood their young neighbor boy in his pajamas holding up a turkey.
“Merry Christmas Mr.Kurtz! Mama wants to know if you would be so kind as to take this turkey from us. He was causing so much trouble with all the other turkeys. Keptpeckin‘em and all. So, we had to kill ‘em, but ma already fixed up old Tom for supper. Do y’all wanna take ‘em?” Larry stood dumbfounded. God had done it. God had given them a turkey!
“Well, I think we can find room on our table for him,” Larry said grinning ear to ear.
“Thank you, son. You don’t know what a blessing this is for us!”
“No problem, Mr. Kurtz! Merry Christmas!”
Larry closed the door and whooped, “We got ourselves a turkey!” The excitement in his family’s eyes was priceless. “I knew God would do it, I knew He would.” Larry still remembered his son whispering. That year they had turkey, corn, rolls and gravy. It may not seem like much, but it was the best Christmas that Larry could remember.
Larry finished the last of his tea and sighed. The sound of laughter drifted through the window as a young couple walked by. This Christmas he was by himself. He had sold all his decorations along with most of his other belongings to help pay the hospital bills. All he had was one little star ornament. Painted on it were the words, ‘In the silence He is there’. Larry didn’t quite know why he had kept that one. But it had always been his favorite. Even in the silence, Christ was there. Larry looked around him; Well if anytime was silent it was now. Normally Christmas would be a time of cheer and laughter in his household. All the excitement! But this year he had no one to shop for, he had no one to dream with, he had no one to celebrate with. It was going to be a quiet Christmas.
The next morning Larry woke up early and sat out on his porch. All was still. Everyone was sleeping peacefully in his or her bed. Larry watched the last few stars, twinkling in the early dawn sky. He wondered about the first Christmas morning so long ago when Jesus Christ was born. It was probably a morning just like this. No big parties and families gathered round to see baby Jesus. No lit up room and excited voices at the birth of the great King. It had taken place in a small manger. Mary, Joseph and some cows. A quiet place.A peaceful place.In his heart Larry smiled. ‘In the silence He is there.’ As Larry lifted his hands and prayed to the Prince of Peace, thanking Him from the still and quiet place in his heart, he heard a familiar voice breaking through the silence.
“Merry Christmas Mr.Kurtz! Can you take this turkey? He’s been causing us problems. . . .” Larry smiled. This Christmas was quickly becoming second on his list of bests. “Thank You, God,’’ Larry whispered.’
I don’t know if this story ties in with the beginning of my post, but this is where it went.
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