The Christmas Thief
An Advent Calendar in Prose
Day 7
Reilly sipped the cold coffee left in the bottom of his cup. December was always a busy month. The holiday season, even in these lean times, was a boon to more than shopkeepers; every pickpocket, mugger, and second-story man counted the shopping days left until Christmas and stocked up for the holiday courtesy of shoppers rushing home with their treasures. The holiday season found Reilly flipping through a case list as thick as plum pudding.
“Will you be home for breakfast?” his wife Jenny asked as she put a plate of chops on the table before he left for his shift.
“Not likely,” Reilly responded. He reached for Jenny’s hand but she was already clearing the girls’ dishes and running water into the sink.
Now at his desk, Reilly thought about his two daughters nestled in their beds with visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads. More likely, visions of baby dolls and ruffled frocks. He had gotten them each a ball glove. No reason girls couldn’t throw and catch a ball around the back yard. Jenny sometimes apologized for not giving him a son but he cherished his baby girls, their giggles, and bright eyes. He told Jenny that these girls were more than enough for any man and he considered his little family the best treasure on earth.
Reilly reached for his crusty mug, thought better of it, set it back on the corner of his desk. It would be a small Christmas this year for his girls. With the entire country suffering from bad times with many out of work and many more hungry, Reilly felt lucky to have a steady paycheck. Even if it meant working these crazy shifts.
Reilly’s chair squeaked as he swiveled around to reach into his filing cabinet. His old friend Barnaby had been pretty quiet lately. Too quiet. Maybe he’d be trying his St. Nick trick again. Reilly suspected that he’d cleaned up – that is cleaned out a whole brownstone on December 24th last year – snatching stockings hung by the chimney with care and packages waiting under the tree for the kiddies. He’d eaten the cookies and drunk the milk too. Reilly hadn’t been able to pin anything on him though. No fingerprints, no left-behind tools. Barnaby must have flown up the chimney like the good Saint Nick and absconded in his sleigh. Reilly stretched and slid on his coat. He’d take a walk around the old town himself tonight, look at the lights, shake a few doorknobs, and watch out for any larcenous Santas.
Bright Eyes, Hungry Ears: Proverbs 20:7 God-loyal people, living honest lives, make it much easier for their children. (MSG)
Challenge: Children watch their elders for signs of God’s love. How are your actions teaching children about God’s love? Remember, “More is caught than taught.” Be deliberate in living a “God-loyal” life so that children can rest easy in his love. Treat children as the treasures they are. Send an encouraging note to a child today.
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