The Greatest Gift of All
There once lived a man and his wife.
The couple lived together in a small house that resided in a small town that lay quietly in the mountains, nestled between two pine tree forests. Many people outside of the town itself failed to note of the very existence of this town at all. It stood there, transfixed in time as the world around it went on.
This town that the couple lived in was of such a small size that all who lived in it knew every other resident by name. The shop owners knew the shoppers, the clergymen knew the clergy, and so on and so forth. The man and his wife were, by far, the most well known of all of the town’s residents. Hardly could they walk the streets without being stopped for the most trivial and mundane reasons. The couple, however, being of such character that only God himself could mimic, took their time with each person that approached them, showing each one the same amount of attention and love they had showed the one before. The couple had all that anyone could ask for and counted themselves blessed for what God had bestowed upon them. The one thing that they did not have, but that they prayed for every night, was a child to call their own.
As the years went by, and the seasons changed, the couple grew older and their hopes of ever having a child began to fade away. They began to beg and plead with God that they might be granted and blessed with a child. Their prayers were not answered, and sadly time ran out for the man and he passed away, leaving the woman alone. The woman was saddened by her husband’s untimely death, but as fate would have it, she began to show signs of being with child.
The town rejoiced for the woman because they knew how much she had wanted a child. They showered the woman with gifts of all kinds, but she refused to accept any. The townspeople insisted that she take them, but still she refused them at her door. People began to spread rumors that the woman had become conceited and thought she was better than the others. The visitors came less and less, and soon ended altogether. On Christmas Day, with the snow dancing around the town in revelry, the woman gave birth to a perfectly healthy son.
Years went by and her son grew into a strong young man. It was clear to everyone in the town that the son loved his mother very much. He did all that he could for her so that she need not worry about anything. He also defended his mother’s honor if anyone in the town dared to speak of her maliciously. The son loved his mother more than anyone could love another.
It must be said that over the years many of the townspeople continued to give a gift to the woman on Christmas Day. They felt it was only right to celebrate the miracle that was her son. Still, the woman refused their gifts and she went about her days as such. The son became aware of what his mother was doing and began to wonder why his mother acted this way.
On his fifteenth birthday, the son decided to give his mother a present. She had given birth to him and raised him and loved him. He felt it was only right to show his gratification. So on his fifteenth birthday, the son bestowed upon his mother a beautiful necklace that the boy himself had made. He was proud of it and felt that she would be too. But, as she had done with the townspeople, the woman refused to accept her son’s gift. The son grew distraught, for he believed that his mother felt that his gift was not good enough to show his love for her. The son was determined to make his mother proud and to give her something she would deem acceptable.
Henceforth, the woman’s son presented her with a gift each year that was far better than the one he had given her the year before. But still, each year the woman would refuse to accept any gift, regardless of the object’s grandness or beauty. The son, now twenty years of age, became bitter towards his mother. Nothing he did seemed good enough for her. He began to wonder if she even loved him at all.
Finally, on the young man’s twenty-first birthday, Christmas Day, he approached his mother with so much anger he could hardly contain it all.
“I have done everything for you!” yelled the son.” I have made you gifts more beautiful, more perfect, and far more grand than anyone has ever seen! And still nothing is good enough for you! Tell me mother, do you love me at all? Am I not good enough for you? Is there no gift that you will accept?”
The son was close to tears as he said this. His mother, on the other hand, simply smiled at her son and wiped his tears away.
“My son,” said the woman, a tenderness in her voice that only mother’s can hold. “There is no gift that could ever be more beautiful, more perfect, or far more grand than the gift that I received on this day, twenty-one years ago.” She kissed his forehead softly and said, “How could I ever accept anything after the most perfect gift of all?”
The son felt ashamed that he had ever felt anger towards his mother. From that day on, as the son grew into a man and had a family of his own, he passed on what he knew to be the greatest gift of all; to love someone more than anyone could ever love another.
The couple lived together in a small house that resided in a small town that lay quietly in the mountains, nestled between two pine tree forests. Many people outside of the town itself failed to note of the very existence of this town at all. It stood there, transfixed in time as the world around it went on.
This town that the couple lived in was of such a small size that all who lived in it knew every other resident by name. The shop owners knew the shoppers, the clergymen knew the clergy, and so on and so forth. The man and his wife were, by far, the most well known of all of the town’s residents. Hardly could they walk the streets without being stopped for the most trivial and mundane reasons. The couple, however, being of such character that only God himself could mimic, took their time with each person that approached them, showing each one the same amount of attention and love they had showed the one before. The couple had all that anyone could ask for and counted themselves blessed for what God had bestowed upon them. The one thing that they did not have, but that they prayed for every night, was a child to call their own.
As the years went by, and the seasons changed, the couple grew older and their hopes of ever having a child began to fade away. They began to beg and plead with God that they might be granted and blessed with a child. Their prayers were not answered, and sadly time ran out for the man and he passed away, leaving the woman alone. The woman was saddened by her husband’s untimely death, but as fate would have it, she began to show signs of being with child.
The town rejoiced for the woman because they knew how much she had wanted a child. They showered the woman with gifts of all kinds, but she refused to accept any. The townspeople insisted that she take them, but still she refused them at her door. People began to spread rumors that the woman had become conceited and thought she was better than the others. The visitors came less and less, and soon ended altogether. On Christmas Day, with the snow dancing around the town in revelry, the woman gave birth to a perfectly healthy son.
Years went by and her son grew into a strong young man. It was clear to everyone in the town that the son loved his mother very much. He did all that he could for her so that she need not worry about anything. He also defended his mother’s honor if anyone in the town dared to speak of her maliciously. The son loved his mother more than anyone could love another.
It must be said that over the years many of the townspeople continued to give a gift to the woman on Christmas Day. They felt it was only right to celebrate the miracle that was her son. Still, the woman refused their gifts and she went about her days as such. The son became aware of what his mother was doing and began to wonder why his mother acted this way.
On his fifteenth birthday, the son decided to give his mother a present. She had given birth to him and raised him and loved him. He felt it was only right to show his gratification. So on his fifteenth birthday, the son bestowed upon his mother a beautiful necklace that the boy himself had made. He was proud of it and felt that she would be too. But, as she had done with the townspeople, the woman refused to accept her son’s gift. The son grew distraught, for he believed that his mother felt that his gift was not good enough to show his love for her. The son was determined to make his mother proud and to give her something she would deem acceptable.
Henceforth, the woman’s son presented her with a gift each year that was far better than the one he had given her the year before. But still, each year the woman would refuse to accept any gift, regardless of the object’s grandness or beauty. The son, now twenty years of age, became bitter towards his mother. Nothing he did seemed good enough for her. He began to wonder if she even loved him at all.
Finally, on the young man’s twenty-first birthday, Christmas Day, he approached his mother with so much anger he could hardly contain it all.
“I have done everything for you!” yelled the son.” I have made you gifts more beautiful, more perfect, and far more grand than anyone has ever seen! And still nothing is good enough for you! Tell me mother, do you love me at all? Am I not good enough for you? Is there no gift that you will accept?”
The son was close to tears as he said this. His mother, on the other hand, simply smiled at her son and wiped his tears away.
“My son,” said the woman, a tenderness in her voice that only mother’s can hold. “There is no gift that could ever be more beautiful, more perfect, or far more grand than the gift that I received on this day, twenty-one years ago.” She kissed his forehead softly and said, “How could I ever accept anything after the most perfect gift of all?”
The son felt ashamed that he had ever felt anger towards his mother. From that day on, as the son grew into a man and had a family of his own, he passed on what he knew to be the greatest gift of all; to love someone more than anyone could ever love another.
The End.
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