"The Twelve Days of Christmas" is possibly the most irritating of all the Christmas songs for the shear numbers of it. But it can also be fun. Watch this video:




[Thanks to Dawn at Because I Said So]

This Christmas, I'd like to give to you a special gift. Here is an excerpt from my first small book--Something Special at Leonard's Inn. This chapter was originally written to read as a retelling of the Christmas story before the gifting began. I hope you are blessed by the reading. Enjoy.



Leonard’s Inn

Leonard and Sarah were anxious about the taxing. Sure it would bring in extra business for the struggling inn, and how they needed the extra business. But along with all the extra business came the beggars, liars, and thieves. Bethlehem was filling up with more and more people claiming kinship to King David. Oh well, Leonard decided that he would make the best of the hectic situation.

“I’m telling you, Leonard, you should do just as your cousin Reuben is, out on Jerusalem Road,” Sarah was always giving advice. “ You will be able to weather the long dry spell to follow Caesar’s proclamation if you will simply double, or better yet triple, your prices.”

“We have been over this, Sarah. I will not stoop to gouging my kinsmen with unfair pricing,” Leonard was shaking his head in that fatherly way that Sarah had grown to love and to hate over the years of their marriage. “We will have plenty simply by sectioning off the common room for families and travelers. And they will all pay a fair price. No more; no less. You see how the inn has been filling up. We will be out of space before the night is over. The Lord will provide for the dry spells as they come.”


With the decree from Caesar Augustus, people from all over the Empire were flooding into the city of David to be registered and taxed according to their wealth, family size, and age. Leonard was almost prophetic in his prediction of space availability. He overheard the last two travelers saying that they were surprised that they were paying regular rates for the last two beds in town. Other hostellers were completely full although they had been charging two and three times the normal price for a mat on the floor. They had a friend that was paying seven times the going rate out on Jerusalem Road just to have a blanket strung up between his family and an old couple from Bethany. That Reuben, he is a shrewd one, Leonard smiled to himself, shaking his head in bewilderment.


He was just finishing the sign that said “No Room” when he saw them out the window. The young couple couldn’t have been married long. They were young. They young man appeared to be no more than twenty or twenty-two. He led a shabby-looking donkey that was carrying the youth’s wife who was “great with child.” Leonard’s heart went out to them. He could tell they were weary from traveling. He opened the door, the newly-painted sign hanging absently from his hand.

“Sir, I was going to see if you had any rooms left for my small family, but I see that you, too, have no space available,” the young man’s voice was tired and resigned, but he began to turn away to head on down the street.

“Wait! Young man, your wife cannot travel any farther in her condition. The streets are filled with thieves and robbers. The night is quickly approaching.” Leonard seemed to be beside himself, but for some reason he could not explain, he felt the need to help this young family. “Wait here just inside the door. I will see if there is not some space for you.”

Leaving the donkey tied to the post outside, the young man lifted his wife down and followed the inn keeper inside. With the door closed to the hustle and bustle of a city swelled to five times its size because of the registry, the poor family leaned heavily against the wall and one another as Leonard stepped to the back of the house. When he returned he found Sarah showing them out.
“ . . . I wish we could accommodate you, but as you can see, there just is no room. I am sure that Lemuel down the street—”

“Sarah!” Leonard’s voice fairly bellowed from the doorway that led to the animal stalls behind the inn. “You will not cast these poor travelers out while I am still in this household!” Taking his wife by the arm and pulling her aside, Leonard lowered his voice, but not the stern reproach it held, “On a night like this, you know that Lemuel will take even the cloak off of this poor man’s back. He might even confiscate the wretched animal they came in on. You can see that they are in no shape to travel further, and I have Daniel clearing a space out back. It is only a stable, but it will be out of the wind and away from the criminals who have made their way to our village to rob travelers of what is left after the likes of Reuben and Lemuel get finished.” To the young couple Leonard said, “My name is Leonard. You are welcome to a space in the stable out back to stay while you are here to register.”

“Thank you, Leonard. Yours is the first kindness we have seen since arriving in the town of my forefathers. My name is Joseph, and as you can see my wife, Mary, is near the time that she will give birth to the child,” the young man reached for his purse as he spoke.

“Put that away,” Leonard said, “what I offer is no more than a meager space in the stable with straw to make you comfortable. How can I charge money for the use of a barn stall?” Sarah glared after them as Leonard led the couple around to the stable behind the inn. Mary silently smiled her gratitude.


The noise in the street had started to subside when Sarah was called upon to help deliver the young woman, Mary’s, baby. As she was hard at work she noticed the two men, Leonard and the vagrant Joseph, standing to the side looking awkward. “You, father. Make yourself useful. Put fresh straw in the manger. It is not a grand cradle, but it will do for this night.” She turned her attention to her own husband, “And you, inn keeper who gives away lodging to any and all passers-by, go into our quarters. There are some soft cloths we can use to protect this new baby when he comes. Bring them to me, and be quick about it!”



Wrested from their wonderment at the birth of a child, the two men turned to the tasks assigned. When Leonard returned, Sarah was cleaning the young boy-child and getting him ready for the swaddles he had brought from the inn. The baby seemed to glow. Leonard knew that there was something different about this family. He knew that he had done something special that night.

I've set up a poll question at Mister Poll. Click on over and choose your favorite.

Here's the question: Who's your favorite Scrooge?

If you don't like all the choices--or have a better one, leave a comment in the here. The poll runs from 12/20-12/25 so hurry on over to vote.

Our second Angel Food distribution was successful (sorry no video this month). Here are the highlights:

• Twice as many orders.
• Cold weather.
• Notification that our delivery would be an hour later.
• The truck was late (so the delivery was actually two hours later).
• Snow (about one inch) on the ground when we started.
• Cold. Icy cold.
• Light mist falling while we were picking up our food.
• People waiting about an hour and one-half for us to get the food from Vandalia to our church and getting it sorted and ready for distribution. Everyone was nice and friendly about it.
• "Winter mix" taking over during the distribution itself.
• Cold. It was very cold.
• All food delivered without a hitch.
• And did I mention that it was cold?

On a side note, because the delivery was later, I had a chance to get out in the snow with my family (pictures to follow--after they come in, so don't look tomorrow). My blushing bride took up an entire roll of film of the progeny making snow angels, tossing snowballs, and just generally having fun in the inch of white stuff that covered the ground when we woke up this morning. The baby loved tromping around in the snow. Since we're supposed to get lots more before it stops in the middle of the night, we may be able to get a snow buddy out of it before we're through.

It's beginning to look a lot like . . .

[Thanks to David Kirk @ Frogtown]

John Smulo has started another meme. This time he wants to know about our favorite Christmas movies. I figure, this is right in my bag. Plus, in the spirit of giving, the rules don't require me to specifically target anyone who once was my friend, but lets only those who want to play along. Read the rules:

1. Write down your four favorite Christmas movies in descending order.
2. Tag the first ten people who respond in your comment section saying they want to particpate.
3. (Optional) Include a link to this post and encourage others to place a link to their completed meme in the comments section of this post so we can keep track of the meme.

So, here we go . . .

# 4. The Santa Claus(e) (I'm almost willing to put all three here, they're all great).

# 3. Scrooge (no, not the Bill Murray comedy Scrooged, but the musical with a sad performance by Albert Finney as the title character, still a great movie).

# 2. It's a Wonderful Life (I always feel like Christmas Season isn't really upon us until I've viewed this one.). And my . . .

# 1 all-time favorite Christmas movie is . . . White Christmas (can't watch it without a tear creeping into my eye at the end).

According to one article (101 videos at the link), these are the essential Christmas videos for a perfect holiday season:

1. It's a Wonderful Life (click to watch)
2. A Charlie Brown Christmas (click to watch)
3. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (click to watch)
4. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (click to watch)
5. Frosty the Snowman (click to watch)
6. A Christmas Story Movie (click to watch)

What do you think? Any favorites of your own? (maybe I should make a poll!)

[A great big ole seasonal tip o' the hat to Bill Crider]

I thought I'd try the poll option added to Blogger fun things to add. The first week-long poll was about Christmas songs. According to the results the one vote was for "Silent Night." I believe that somehow I hit a vote button, so even the one vote was invalid. For future notice, if you'd like to participate in polls--they'll be over in the side bar.

Happy Holidays everyone. (See, it's okay to say, "Happy Holidays!")