Page 87 of Merry Christmas, Cowboy

Garrett sighed heavily as he lay the boy down on his bed and tucked him in. “Here you go, Code.” The night had grown cold, even giving Garrett a shiver. “Sleep well,” he whispered.

Garrett was halfway out of the room, when he turned to find Cody had opened his eyes to peer out the window, looking longingly for snow that wouldn’t fall. Even half asleep, the boy’s disappointment showed. Then he turned his head, and drifted back to sleep.

They’d made it through their first Christmas together. Maybe the next one would be a little easier. Garrett sat down at the kitchen table, warming himself up with a steaming hot cup of coffee. He held the gift Nicole had given him in his hand. It was time to open it.

Slowly, he unwrapped the small box and lifted the lid. He found a card that read:Operation Holiday Fun. He gave that notion a chuckle. They did have holiday fun this year. Images popped into his head of the tree lighting, hot cocoa splurges, the choir performance, and decorating Cottonwood with Christmas cheer. They were good memories, all due to Nicole.

He pushed tissue paper aside and lifted out a watch, the goofy kind with a crazy-looking character on the face in green wearing a grimy Santa hat. He gave it a full inspection and then turned it over to find an inscription on the back.

Garrett read the words aloud. “A grinch no more.”

He laughed, a long steady laugh that brightened his spirit and made him rethink everything about his life. But the thinking was interrupted, as the wind howled and another frigid bout of cold made him shiver again. He walked to the window, looking for wind damage. The Christmas tree in the middle of the corral held steady and all the lights set up around the house rattled, but not a one broke.

And then he saw something. He blinked and blinked again. But the image was still there, he wasn’t seeing things. It was real. Tiny white flakes drifting down, descending from the heavens. Snow. It was falling steadily, hitting the ground in silence and covering the land with a soft white blanket.

He glanced at his new watch and then ran into Cody’s room. Hardly able to contain his excitement, he put a hand on Cody’s shoulder and shook him gently. “Cody, Cody. Wake up.”

The boy turned in the bed, facing up now, but his eyes were still clamped shut. “Cody. Come on, you have to see this.”

“Uncle Garrett,” he mumbled.

“Cody, it’s snowing!”

The boy’s eyes popped open. “What?”

“That’s right. You want to see?”

Cody sat upright on the bed. Garrett picked him up and took him over to the window. “Look at it, Cody. Look at all that snow.”

The boy rubbed his eyes, and took a look. “Is it still Christmas, Uncle Garrett?”

“Yeah, Cody, it’s still Christmas.” They had about an hour left of the holiday. “Wanna go catch a few snowflakes?”

Cody nodded eagerly. “Yeah. Oh, boy!”

Quickly, Garrett put on their heaviest coats and boots. He covered both their heads with knit caps and off they went, Cody in his arms. They stood by the Christmas tree, palms out, catching snowflakes. “Mommy’s here, Uncle Garrett. She’s wishing us a merry Christmas.”

And suddenly, Garrett was a believer too. Because none of this made sense. And because little Cody had enough faith for the both of them. “Yeah, she is, Code. Your mom is here with us.”

“I told you so,” Cody said. “I knew the snow would come.”

“Sometimes, Code, you’re smarter than me. Hey, look at this one. It looks like a perfect star.”

Cody put out his hand too. “I have three, and they look like a snowman. Uncle Garrett, I wish I could show it to Miss Russell too.”

“You do?”

“She’d love catching snowflakes with us.”

“You know what Cody, you’re right. She would.”

They stayed outside for a few more minutes, the air a bit too cold to linger. But even as they returned to the house, Cody’s sense of wonder hadn’t faded. “Uncle Garrett? Can we play the what if game?”

“Code, it’s late. We should both head to bed.”

“Please, just for a minute.”

“Okay, just for a minute.”

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