How Christmas Memories Are Made

We love a great Christmas surprise. But no surprise here: INSP viewers have a lot of heart! From joyful memories to Christmas miracles, thanks for sharing a part of your lives.

Your Christmas Stories…

Lost and Found

I was maybe about 6 years old and I had a favorite doll that I played with and kept by my side day and night. Until one day she came up missing. She was worn, but not raggedy. She was just well loved. And when she came up missing, it broke my heart. I had lost my best friend.

That Christmas morning I was really hoping for a doll to replace my best friend. It would never be the same, but it would help fill the void a little. I was handed a shoebox size package all wrapped in pretty 50’s Christmas paper with a thin stand of ribbon wrapped sidewise and longwise.

When I opened the lid, to my surprise, there was my doll, my lost friend that I shared my life with. And she has been sewn and cleaned. As I picked her up, hugging her tight, I saw there was more in the box. My Grandmother had made several new outfits so she would not only look cleaner, but better dressed. Even now as an old woman, it was my best Christmas memory. God bless you. – Brenda, OK

News Flash! Santa Prefers Coffee!

Like any 8 year old, Christmas was that time of year that held secrets, hopes and dreams. I was always excited about Christmas but this particular Christmas has stayed with me my whole entire life. I always left something for Santa to nibble on after he left his surprises under our tree. My eyes always went to the place where that plate and thermos (yes, Santa preferred hot coffee; that sleigh ride is cold!) to see that he had been here, and my treats had been eaten. Not only had Santa taken a nibble from some of the Whitman’s Sampler, but he had forgotten to put the lid back on the box, and had left a half-eaten piece on the plate. I’m sure my parents were trying to stifle their smiles and laughter as I excitedly picked up the piece of candy to examine it.

Then my Dad, who was standing next to the front door, said very calmly, “Well, look here!” Thinking Santa may have dropped a package or something outside in the yard, I raced to the door and saw boot prints and sleigh tracks in the snow!!! Scattered about were what looked like to me, reindeer tracks!

After that, presents were exciting, but not nearly as exciting as seeing those boot prints and sleigh tracks in the snow….I am 51 now, and every Christmas morning, I wake up and look out our door and would you believe it? Those boot prints and sleigh tracks are there in the snow like magic! You have to look close or you might miss them. Our son even witnessed their appearance several times over the years. Keep the magic alive in your heart and your eyes will always see Christmas miracles. – Julie, IN

Here Comes the Bride

My best Christmas Surprise came when I was 8 years old. I wanted a bride doll I had seen in a storefront for Christmas. Well me and my nosey self, found a small bride doll under the front seat of my Dad’s car. I was devastated on two fronts: one, it was not the bride doll I wanted and two: the realization that Santa was not real. I cried and cried and told my Grandmother all about my discovery.

On Christmas morning, I got up with the rest of my siblings and there by the tree, sitting in my little rocking chair was the bride doll I wanted. There was also a letter from Santa telling me that as long as I believed he would continue to come and to never, ever forget the real reason for the season was not in the gifts we got, but the gift God gave us.

I found out later that my Dad woke the owner of the store that had the doll I wanted and asked him to open his store so Daddy could buy his baby girl the bride doll she wanted. The store owner wrote the letter to me from Santa. I still have that bride doll who now looks like Frankenstein’s bride, but she will always be with me, tucked away in my closet because as it turned out, that was one of the last Christmases I had with my Daddy before he died of cancer. Oh, and by the way, I still believe in Santa, and I’m 67 years old now. – Sandra, AL