Page 38 of Single Dad's Christmas Cookie

“Humphrey likes to be fancy,” Amelia announced.

I laughed as she made her selection and finally decided on what to purchase.

“Is there any more shopping we need to do?” I asked.

“I have one last thing I would like to get, and then I should head out to the grocery store,” Nova said.

We headed back to the main entrance. Nova stopped in front of a Christmas tree that was not decorated with ornaments and tinsel, but rather covered in tags of various colors. She read a couple of the tags before selecting one and taking it over to the closest counter with a sales clerk.

“I’d like to take care of this, please,” she said, handing the clerk the tag and her credit card.

“Are you buying the tree?” Amelia asked.

“No, sweetie, I’m getting a Christmas present for someone.”

“For who?” Amelia asked.

“I don’t know. But they need knee socks for school sports.” Nova held up the tag for Amelia. “See, it’s on the tag.”

“But the tree is covered in tags.” Amelia ran back to the tree and began looking at the tags. “What are all of these?”

“Those are gifts that other kids need. I try to buy a gift every year. No matter how hard I think things are for me, I know I can help someone out with something. This year, it’s a few pairs of socks. Maybe next year, I can afford to buy someone some tennis shoes.”

“It’s called an Angel Tree,” the sales clerk said as she returned Nova’s credit card. “Thank you so much for your donation.”

“I don’t understand,” Amelia said. “There are no angels on the tree.”

“No, it’s called an Angel Tree. All those tags are for things that other boys and girls would like to get for Christmas or that theyneed. They fill out a card, and then they put them on the tree, and somebody buys that gift for them.”

“Do I have a present on the Angel Tree?”

“No, sweetheart, you don’t need an Angel Tree gift,” I said. “These are for boys and girls who might not have very much or might not get many presents this year.”

“Can we buy a present off the Angel Tree, Daddy?” She began picking tags out and held out a handful to me. “Do we have to wrap them?”

“The people who run the Angel Tree program will take care of wrapping and delivering the presents. We help them out by buying them.” I took the tags that Amelia had collected and handed them over to the clerk. I paused before handing over my credit card and switched to the black Amex card. “Actually, how much for the whole tree?”

17

NOVA

“What are you doing, Bryan?” I laughed as he and Amelia started pulling tags off the tree.

“You’re not the only one with the holiday spirit.”

His mood had dramatically changed from the day before.

“If you can find the extra funds in your meager budget to help someone out, then I see no reason I shouldn’t do the same.”

“But the whole tree?” I asked, shocked.

“The whole tree!”

Amelia was laughing and dancing as she carried tags from the tree to the counter. The clerk was laughing and having a great time. Bryan’s incredible generosity improved the mood of all the shoppers around us. It was as if people had gone from the burden of having to shop to actually having fun. Bryan took tags off the higher spots of the tree. He handed them to Amelia, and Amelia ran them across the aisle way to where the clerk was arranging tickets before she began ringing everything in.

“This almost makes up for the storm that’s coming in,” she said.

“What storm?” I asked.

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