The Glitter Card

"Mommy, mommy look at the beautiful glitter card," the little girl said.
"Yes, Amanda, it is a beautiful card. Would you like me to buy it for you?" asked her mother. Amanda nodded her head yes.
Amanda didn't know who to send the glitter card to. The stars were shining so bright on the card, it was as if the card was trying to tell her something. Amanda wondered what this special card was trying to say.
It was two days before Christmas when her Uncle Gerald came and visited her. Amanda showed him her special glitter card and asked him if he knew what the card was trying to tell her.
"Well, Amanda, I think this card is very, very special and you must decide what to do with it. You can send it to your parents, friends, aunts, uncles, or give it away to someone special," said Uncle Gerald.
Amanda didn't want to mail it to anyone or give it away. She wanted to keep it forever. Amanda told her Uncle that she would keep the card until it told her what to do.
Her Uncle laughed, patted her head and gave her $5.00.

On Christmas Eve, Amanda went downtown to the toy store. She loved looking in the windows, and she knew that Santa Claus would be giving her everything she had on her Christmas list.
Standing next to Amanda was a mother and child. They were dressed in torn clothes that didn't look very warm.
The little girl asked her mommy if Santa Claus would know they were living in their car and would bring her a gift this year.
The little girl's mommy had the saddest eyes Amanda ever saw. With a small tear falling down her face, the mother told her little girl, she hoped Santa Claus wouldn't forget them.
Amanda pulled the glitter card out of her pocket, looked at it and then realized what the special card was telling her.
She reached into her other pocket, took out the $5.00 Uncle Gerald had given her and handed the card and the money to the mother.
Amanda ran all the way home. She was happy she was able to help someone, but she missed her special glitter card.
Throughout Amanda's life, at Christmastime she always remembered the "special glitter card" she once had. She had told her children and grandchildren the story of her special card and how one card and $5.00 helped to make a Merry Christmas for one family.

One cold Christmas Eve, Amanda was sitting alone on a park bench. A girl came over to Amanda and asked her why she was crying. Amanda told the little girl that her husband died two years ago, her children had all moved away and she was all alone for Christmas.
The little girl reached in her pocket and pulled out an old tattered card and handed it to Amanda saying, "Please take this card. Many, many years ago someone gave this card and $5.00 to my great-grandmother on Christmas Eve. Great granny told me it was the best Christmas they ever had."
Amanda was shocked to see it was the card she gave away so many years ago. She was just about to tell the girl that she was the one who gave the card to her great-grandmother, when the girl reached into her other pocket and pulled out $5.00. She handed Amanda the money and said, "Please hold on to this card until you find someone 'special' to pass it to." With that, the girl ran away.
As Amanda sat there looking at the glitter card, she was shocked to see all the stars start to move. Instead of a group of shining stars, they now were grouped together to form one bright, shining star.
Amanda now realized what this card was telling her so many years ago. Christmas isn't about gifts, toys, parties or pretty clothes. Christmas is about love and sharing.
~ by B. Heran