The doorbell rang one mid-December evening. I frequently had unexpected visitors in those early days after my husband's 1 . But when my 6-year-old son opened the door, nobody was there. 2 , on the doormat was a box, tied with a silver 3 and a note that said "On the First Day of Christmas..." A mystery.
Sam had died that fall, 4 me the single parent of our two boys, 6 and 8. My sons and I had already 5 to deal with Halloween, and Thanksgiving without Daddy. Still, I was afraid of Christmas. How could December have 6 without my husband?
The next night, the doorbell rang again. Another 7 came, decorated with the same silver ribbon (带子) and 8 the same card reading "On the Second Day of Christmas..."
For the next couple of nights, my boys waited near the front door to see who was leaving the gifts, but the bearer would always choose the moment they left to 9 .
I didn't know who the secret Santa was. But there was one thing I did know. In those dark days of 10 , somebody was shining a light our way with a simple but 11 message: "You are loved." It was such a strange feeling, to be left in darkness on the one hand and drawn so firmly toward 12 on the other. I believe hope will make a(n) 13 .
After 11 days of offerings, we weren't sure what to 14 when we approached home on that 12th night. I trusted there would be 15 .
