>>> I needed this. Maybe you do, too.
>>>
>>>
>>> The old man sat in his gas station on a cold Christmas Eve. He hadn't been
>>> anywhere in years since his wife had passed away. It was just another day to
>>> him.
>>>
>>> He didn't hate Christmas,just couldn't find a reason to celebrate.
>>> He was sitting there looking at the snow that had been falling for the last hour
>>> and wondering what it was all about when the door opened and a homeless man
>>> stepped through.
>>>
>>>
>>> Instead of throwing the man out, Old George as he was known by his customers,
>>> told the man to come and sit by the heater and warm up.
>>> "Thank you, but I don't mean to intrude," said the stranger. "I see you're busy,
>>> I'll just go."
>>>
>>> "Not without something hot in your belly." George said.
>>>
>>> He turned and opened a wide mouth Thermos and handed it to the stranger. "It
>>> ain't much, but it's hot and tasty. Stew ... Made it myself. When you're done,
>>> there's coffee and it's fresh."
>>>
>>>
>>> Just at that moment he heard the "ding" of the driveway bell. "Excuse me, be
>>> right back," George said.
>>>
>>> There in the driveway was an old '53 Chevy. Steam was rolling out of the front..
>>> The driver was panicked. "Mister can you help me!" said the driver, with a deep
>>> Spanish accent. "My wife is with child and my car is broken." George opened the
>>> hood. It was bad. The block looked cracked from the cold,the car was dead.
>>>
>>>
>>> "You ain't going in this thing," George said as he turned away.
>>>
>>> "But Mister, please help ..." The door of the office closed behind George as he
>>> went inside.
>>>
>>> He went to the office wall and got the keys to his old truck, and went back
>>> outside. He walked around the building, opened the garage, started the truck and
>>> drove it around to where the couple was waiting. "Here, take my truck," he said.
>>> "She ain't the best thing you ever looked at, but she runs real good."
>>>
>>>
>>> George helped put the woman in the truck and watched as it sped off into the
>>> night. He turned and walked back inside the office. "Glad I gave 'em the truck,
>>> their tires were shot too. That 'ol truck has brand new ." George thought he was
>>> talking to the stranger, but the man had gone.
>>> The Thermos was on the desk, empty, with a used coffee cup beside it. "Well, at
>>> least he got something in his belly," George thought.
>>>
>>>
>>> George went back outside to see if the old Chevy would start. It cranked slowly,
>>> but it started. He pulled it into the garage where the truck had been. He
>>> thought he would tinker with it for something to do.
>>>
>>> Christmas Eve meant no customers. He discovered the block hadn't cracked, it was
>>> just the bottom hose on the radiator. "Well, shoot,I can fix this," he said to
>>> himself.
>>>
>>> So he put a new one on.
>>>
>>> "Those tires ain't gonna get 'em through the winter either." He took the snow
>>> treads off of his wife's old Lincoln. They were like new and he wasn't going to
>>> drive the car anyway.
>>>
>>>
>>> As he was working, he heard shots being fired.
>>> He ran outside and beside a police car an officer lay on the cold ground..
>>> Bleeding from the left shoulder, the officer moaned, "Please help me."
>>>
>>>
>>> George helped the officer inside as he remembered the training he had received
>>> in the Army as a medic. He knew the wound needed attention. "Pressure to stop
>>> the bleeding," he thought.
>>>
>>> The uniform company had been there that morning and had left clean shop towels.
>>> He used those and duct tape to bind the wound. "Hey, they say duct tape can fix
>>> anythin'," he said, trying to make the policeman feel at ease.
>>>
>>>
>>> "Something for pain," George thought. All he had was the pills he used for his
>>> back. "These ought to work." He put some water in a cup and gave the policeman
>>> the pills. "You hang in there, I'm going to get you an ambulance."
>>>
>>>
>>> The phone was dead. "Maybe I can get one of your buddies on that there talk box
>>> out in your car." He went out only to find that a bullet had gone into the
>>> dashboard destroying the two way radio.
>>>
>>>
>>> He went back in to find the policeman sitting up. "Thanks," said the officer.
>>> "You could have left me there. The guy that shot me is still in the area.."
>>>
>>>
>>> George sat down beside him, "I would never leave an injured man in the Army and
>>> I ain't gonna leave you." George pulled back the bandage to check for bleeding.
>>> "Looks worse than what it is. Bullet passed right through 'ya. Good thing it
>>> missed the important stuff though. I think with time your gonna be right as
>>> rain."
>>>
>>>
>>> George got up and poured a cup of coffee. "How do you take it?" he asked..
>>>
>>> "None for me," said the officer..
>>>
>>> "Oh, yer gonna drink this. Best in the city. Too bad I ain't got no donuts." The
>>> officer laughed and winced at the same time.
>>>
>>>
>>> The front door of the office flew open. In burst a young man with a gun. "Give
>>> me all your cash! Do it now!" the young man yelled. His hand was shaking and
>>> George could tell that he had never done anything like this before.
>>>
>>>
>>> "That's the guy that shot me!" exclaimed the officer.
>>>
>>> "Son, why are you doing this?" asked George, "You need to put the cannon away.
>>> Somebody else might get hurt."
>>>
>>>
>>> The young man was confused. "Shut up old man, or I'll shoot you, too. Now give
>>> me the cash!"
>>>
>>>
>>> The cop was reaching for his gun. "Put that thing away," George said to the cop,
>>> "we got one too many in here now."
>>>
>>>
>>> He turned his attention to the young man. "Son, it's Christmas Eve. If you need
>>> money, well then, here. It ain't much but it's all I got. Now put that pea
>>> shooter away."
>>>
>>>
>>> George pulled $150 out of his pocket and handed it to the young man, reaching
>>> for the barrel of the gun at the same time. The young man released his grip on
>>> the gun, fell to his knees and began to cry. "I'm not very good at this am I?
>>> All I wanted was to buy something for my wife and son," he went on. "I've lost
>>> my job, my rent is due, my car got repossessed last week."
>>>
>>>
>>> George handed the gun to the cop. "Son, we all get in a bit of squeeze now and
>>> then. The road gets hard sometimes, but we make it through the best we can."
>>>
>>>
>>> He got the young man to his feet, and sat him down on a chair across from the
>>> cop. "Sometimes we do stupid things." George handed the young man a cup of
>>> coffee. "Bein' stupid is one of the things that makes us human. Comin' in here
>>> with a gun ain't the answer. Now sit there and get warm and we'll sort this
>>> thing out."
>>>
>>>
>>> The young man had stopped crying. He looked over to the cop. "Sorry I shot you.
>>> It just went off. I'm sorry officer."
>>>
>>>
>>> "Shut up and drink your coffee " the cop said.
>>>
>>> George could hear the sounds of sirens outside. A police car and an ambulance
>>> skidded to a halt. Two cops came through the door, guns drawn. "Chuck! You ok?"
>>> one of the cops asked the wounded officer.
>>>
>>>
>>> "Not bad for a guy who took a bullet. How did you find me?"
>>>
>>> "GPS locator in the car. Best thing since sliced bread. Who did this?" the other
>>> cop asked as he approached the young man.
>>>
>>>
>>> Chuck answered him, "I don't know. The guy ran off into the dark. Just dropped
>>> his gun and ran."
>>>
>>>
>>> George and the young man both looked puzzled at each other.
>>>
>>> "That guy work here?" the wounded cop continued.
>>>
>>> "Yep," George said, "just hired him this morning. Boy lost his job."
>>>
>>> The paramedics came in and loaded Chuck onto the stretcher. The young man leaned
>>> over the wounded cop and whispered, "Why?"
>>>
>>>
>>> Chuck just said, "Merry Christmas boy ... and you too, George, and thanks for
>>> everything."
>>>
>>>
>>> "Well, looks like you got one doozy of a break there. That ought to solve some
>>> of your problems."
>>>
>>>
>>> George went into the back room and came out with a box. He pulled out a ring
>>> box. "Here you go, something for the little woman. I don't think Martha would
>>> mind. She said it would come in handy some day."
>>>
>>>
>>> The young man looked inside to see the biggest diamond ring he ever saw. "I
>>> can't take this," said the young man. "It means something to you."
>>>
>>>
>>> "And now it means something to you," replied George. "I got my memories. That's
>>> all I need."
>>>
>>>
>>> George reached into the box again. An airplane, a car and a truck appeared next.
>>> They were toys that the oil company had left for him to sell. "Here's something
>>> for that little man of yours."
>>>
>>>
>>> The young man began to cry again as he handed back the $150 that the old man had
>>> handed him earlier.
>>>
>>>
>>> "And what are you supposed to buy Christmas dinner with? You keep that too,"
>>> George said. "Now git home to your family."
>>>
>>>
>>> The young man turned with tears streaming down his face. "I'll be here in the
>>> morning for work, if that job offer is still good."
>>>
>>>
>>> "Nope. I'm closed Christmas day," George said. "See ya the day after."
>>>
>>> George turned around to find that the stranger had returned. "Where'd you come
>>> from? I thought you left?"
>>>
>>>
>>> "I have been here. I have always been here," said the stranger. "You say you
>>> don't celebrate Christmas. Why?"
>>>
>>>
>>> "Well, after my wife passed away, I just couldn't see what all the bother was.
>>> Puttin' up a tree and all seemed a waste of a good pine tree. Bakin' cookies
>>> like I used to with Martha just wasn't the same by myself and besides I was
>>> getting' a little chubby."
>>>
>>>
>>> The stranger put his hand on George's shoulder. "But you do celebrate the
>>> holiday, George. You gave me food and drink and warmed me when I was cold and
>>> hungry. The woman with child will bear a son and he will become a great doctor.
>>>
>>>
>>> The policeman you helped will go on to save 19 people from being killed by
>>> terrorists. The young man who tried to rob you will make you a rich man and not
>>> take any for himself. "That is the spirit of the season and you keep it as good
>>> as any man."
>>>
>>>
>>> George was taken aback by all this stranger had said. "And how do you know all
>>> this?" asked the old man.
>>>
>>>
>>> "Trust me, George. I have the inside track on this sort of thing. And when your
>>> days are done you will be with Martha again."
>>>
>>>
>>> The stranger moved toward the door. "If you will excuse me, George, I have to go
>>> now. I have to go home where there is a big celebration planned."
>>>
>>>
>>> George watched as the old leather jacket and the torn pants that the stranger
>>> was wearing turned into a white robe. A golden light began to fill the room.
>>>
>>>
>>> "You see, George ... it's My birthday. Merry Christmas."
>>>
>>> George fell to his knees and replied, "Happy Birthday, Lord Jesus"
>>>
>>>
>>> This story is better than any greeting card.
>>>
>>> MERRY CHRISTMAS AND GOD BLESS!
>>>
>>>
>>> Now clear the lump from your throat, blow your nose, and send this along to a
>>> friend of yours or someone who may need a reminder as to why we celebrate
>>> Christmas.
>>>