Showing posts with label mother. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mother. Show all posts

Friday, March 20, 2009

Christmas Shoes

Inspired by: "Golden Shoes for Jesus" by Helga Schmidt
Original Song by: NewSong

Christmas Shoes

It was almost Christmas time, there I stood in another line
Tryin' to buy that last gift or two, not really in the Christmas mood
Standing right in front of me was a little boy waiting anxiously
Pacing 'round like little boys do
And in his hands he held a pair of shoes

His clothes were worn and old, he was dirty from head to toe
And when it came his time to pay
I couldn't believe what I heard him say

[Chorus:]
Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It's Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there's not much time
You see she's been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight

He counted pennies for what seemed like years
Then the cashier said, "Son, there's not enough here"
He searched his pockets frantically
Then he turned and he looked at me
He said Mama made Christmas good at our house Though most years she just did without
Tell me Sir, what am I going to do,
Somehow I've got to buy her these Christmas shoes

So I laid the money down, I just had to help him out
I'll never forget the look on his face when he said
Mama's gonna look so great

Sir, I want to buy these shoes for my Mama, please
It's Christmas Eve and these shoes are just her size
Could you hurry, sir, Daddy says there's not much time
You see she's been sick for quite a while
And I know these shoes would make her smile
And I want her to look beautiful if Mama meets Jesus tonight

[Bridge:]
I knew I'd caught a glimpse of heaven's love
As he thanked me and ran out
I knew that God had sent that little boy
To remind me just what Christmas is all about.

Golden Shoes for Jesus

Author: Helga Schmidt

It was only four days before Christmas. The spirit of the season had not yet caught up with me, even though cars packed the parking lot of our local discount store. Inside the store was worse. Shopping carts and last-minute shoppers jammed the aisles.

Buying for someone who had everything and deploring the high cost of items, I considered gift buying anything but fun.

Hurriedly, I filled my shopping cart with last-minute items and proceeded to the long checkout lines. I picked the shortest, but it looked as if it would mean at least a 20 minutes wait.

In front of me were two small children - a boy of about five and a slightly younger girl. She carried a beautiful pair of shiny, gold house-slippers. As the Christmas music sounded in the store's stereo system, the small girl hummed along, off-key, but happily.

When we finally approached the checkout register, the girl carefully placed the shoes on the counter. She treated them as though they were a treasure.

The clerk rang up the bill. "That will be $6.09," she said.

The boy laid his crumpled bills atop the stand while he searched his pockets. He finally came up with $3.12. "I guess we'll have to put them back," he bravely announced. "We'll come back some other time, maybe tomorrow."

With that statement, a soft sob broke from the little girl. "But Jesus would have loved those shoes." she cried.

"Well, we'll go home and work some more. Don't cry, we'll come back." he assured her.

Quickly I handed $3.00 to the clerk. These children waited in line for a long time. And after all, it was Christmas.

Suddenly a pair of arms came around me and a small voice said, "Thank you lady."

"What did you mean when you said Jesus would like the shoes?" I asked.

The boy answered, "Our mommy is sick and going to heaven. Daddy said she might go before Christmas to be with Jesus."

The girl spoke, "My sunday school teacher said the streets up in heaven are shiny gold, just like these slippers. Won't my mommy be beautiful walking on those streets to match these shoes?"

My eyes flooded as I looked into her tear-streaked face. "Yes," I answered, "I'm sure she will."

Silently I thanked God for using these children to remind me of the true spirit of giving.

Somehow, not only for Christmas
But all the long year through
The joy that you give to others
Is the joy that comes back to you

The Doll and the White Rose

Inspired by: "Roses for Mama" by C.w. Mccall
Re-written by: V.A.Bailey (Unconfirmed)

The Doll and the White Rose

I hurried into the local department store to grab some last minute Christmas gifts. I looked at all the people and grumbled to myself. I would be in here forever and I just had so much to do. Christmas was beginning to become such a drag. I kinda wished that I could just sleep through Christmas. But I hurried the best I could through all the people to the toy department. Once again I kind of mumbled to myself at the prices of all these toys. And wondered if the grandkids would even play with them.

I found myself in the doll aisle. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a little boy about 5 holding a lovely doll. He kept touching her hair and he held her so gently. I could not seem to help myself. I just kept looking over at the little boy and wondered who the doll was for. I watched him turn to a woman and he called his aunt by name and said, "Are you sure I don't have enough money"

She replied a bit impatiently, "You know that you don't have enough money for it. The aunt told the little boy not to go anywhere that she had to go get some other things and would be back in a few minutes. And then she left the aisle.

The boy continued to hold the doll. After a bit I ask the boy who the doll was for. He said, "it is the doll my sister wanted so badly for Christmas. She just knew that Santa would bring it." I told him that maybe Santa was going to bring it. He said "No, Santa can't go where my sister is" "I have to give the doll to my Momma to take to her". I ask him where his sister was. He looked at me with the saddest eyes and said "She has gone to be with Jesus. My Daddy says that Momma is going to have to go be with her". My heart nearly stopped beating. Then the boy looked at me again and said, "I told my Daddy to tell Momma not to go yet. I told him to tell her to wait till I got back from the store"

Then he ask me if I wanted to see his picture. I told him I would love to. He pulled out some pictures he'd had taken at the front of the store. He said "I want my Momma to take this with her so she don't ever forget me. I love my Momma so very much and I wish she did not have to leave me. But Daddy says she will need to be with my sister."

I saw that the little boy had lowered his head and had grown so very quiet.
While he was not looking I reached into my purse and pulled out a hand full of bills. I ask the little boy, "Shall we count that money one more time?"

He grew excited and said , "Yes, I just know it has to be enough" So I slipped my money in with his and we began to count it. And of course it was plenty for the doll. He softly said, "Thank you Jesus for giving me enough money."

Then the boy said I just asked Jesus to give me enough money to buy this doll so Momma can take it with her to give to my sister." "And he heard my prayer"
"I wanted to ask him for enough to buy my Momma a white rose, but I didn't ask him, but he gave me enough to buy the doll and a rose for my Momma."

"She loves white roses so very very much"

In a few minutes the aunt came back and I wheeled my cart away. I could not keep from thinking about the little boy as I finished my shopping in a totally different spirit than when I had started. And I kept remembering a story I had seen in the newspaper several days earlier about a drunk driver hitting a car and killing a little girl and the Mother was in serious condition.

The family was deciding on whether to remove the life support. Now surely this little boy did not belong with that story.

Two days later I read in the paper where the family had disconnected the life support and the young woman had died. I could not forget the little boy and just kept wondering if the two were somehow connected. Later that day, I could not help myself and I went out and bought some white roses and took them to the funeral home where the young woman was. And there she was holding a lovely white rose, the beautiful doll, and the picture of the little boy in the store. I left there in tears, my life changed forever. The love that little boy had for his little sister and his mother was over whelming.

And in a split second a drunk driver had ripped the life of that little boy to pieces.

Roses for Mama

Original Song by: C.W. McCall

Roses for Mama

[Spoken]

Well, I had two weeks vacation comin', so I thought I'd drive down to Florida: spend some time with an old friend, date a few girls, make a few parties, and just kinda live it up again.

So I packed up my car, and then I called my Mom in Tennesee, and told her what I planned to do. She said, "Son, are you comin' by?" And I said, "Mom, I'm really pushed for time, but I'll see you in a week or two."

And I was drivin' through this little town in Georgia when I remembered: today's Mama's birthday. Well, I thought I'll just stop and wire some flowers. Shouldn't take too long; then I'll be on my way.

So I walked in a flower shop and the first thing I saw was this little boy, with his eyes full a' tears. I said, "What's wrong, son?" He said, "Mama loves roses. And today's her birthday, and I haven't seen her in almost a year."

[Chorus]
Roses for Mama
Today's her birthday
Roses for Mama
Today's her birthday

He said, "I live with Grandma now. But I promised Mama some roses, 'cause I talk to her all the time. I wanted to give her five, 'cause that's how old I am. But the lady said I couldn't buy 'em with just a dime."

Well, the little fella's story kind a' touched my heart, so I told the lady to give him what he wanted and charge it to me. Then I told her I needed to wire a dozen roses to my Mama, up in Chapel Hill, Tennessee.

I looked around, and the little boy was gone. But all of a sudden the door flew open and he come runnin' back in and he said, "Mister, I forgot to thank you for the roses." He smiled, he shook my hand, and ran back out again.

Well, I started on out of town. And I was feelin' real proud of myself for thinkin' of my Mama and really carin', when I looked out the window and I saw that same little boy, kneelin', by a grave in an old cemetery.

I stopped my car and walked over to where the little boy was kneelin' down. And he smiled up at me and said, "This is where my Mama stays. She says she sure does thank you for these pretty roses." Well that's when I had to walk away.

And I drove straight back to that flower shop and I said, "Lady, have you sent those flowers to Tennessee?" She said, "No, not yet." I said, "Well, nevermind. I'll just take them back with me."

[Chorus]
Roses for Mama
Today's her birthday
Roses for Mama
Today's her birthday