CHRISTMAS EVERYWHERE (continued 2)

“I am a soldier’s wife, but my husband has been sent far away. We have used up our money and I went to-day for work but they told me to come again.”

Martuin sighed. “Have you no warm clothes?”

“Ah, this is the time to wear them, but yesterday I sold my last warm shawl for food.”

Martuin sighed. He went to the little cupboard and found an old coat. “Take it,” he said. “It is a poor thing, yet it may help you.” He slipped some money into her hand and with this said, “Buy yourself a shawl and food till work shall be found.”

“May Christ bless you!” she cried. “He must have sent me to you. It had grown so cold my little child would have frozen to death, but He, the Christ-child, led you to look through the window.”

“Indeed He did,” said Martuin, smiling.

The woman left. Martuin ate some sheki, washed the dishes, and sat down again by the window to work. A shadow darkened the window. Martuin looked up eagerly. It was only an acquaintance who lived a little further down the street. Again the window grew dark. This time Martuin saw that an old apple woman had stopped right in front of the window. She carried a basket with apples and over her shoulder she had a bag full of chips. One could see that the bag was heavy. She lowered it to the sidewalk and as she did so, she set the apples on a little post. A little boy with a torn cap darted up, picked an apple out of the basket and started to run but the old woman caught him, knocked off his cap, and seized him by the hair.

Martuin ran out in the cold. “Let him go, Babushka; forgive him for Christ’s sake.”

“I will forgive him so that he won’t forget it till the new broom grows! I am going to take him to the police.”

“Let him go, Babushka, let him go for Christ’s sake. He will never do it again.”

The old woman let him loose. The boy tried to run, but Martuin kept him back.

“Ask Babushka’s forgiveness,” he said, “and never do it again. I saw you take the apple.”

With tears in his eyes the boy began to ask forgiveness.

“There, that’s all right,” said Martuin; “take the apple. I will pay for it.”

“You ruin the good-for-nothings,” said the old woman. “He should be well punished. He deserves it.”

“Perhaps,” answered Martuin, “but God forgives us though we deserve it not.”

“Well, well,” said the old woman, appeased, “after all it was but a childish trick.” She started to lift the bag upon her shoulder.

“Let me take it,” said the boy. “It is on my way.”

Side by side they passed along the street, the boy carrying the bag and chattering to the old woman. Martuin turned and went back into the little room.

After sewing a little while it grew too dark to see. He lighted his little lamp, finished his piece of work, put it away, and took down his Bible. Suddenly he seemed to hear someone stepping around behind him. In the dark corner there seemed to be people standing. Then he heard a voice, “Martuin, ah, Martuin, did you not know me?”

“Who?” cried Martuin.

“It is I,” replied the voice, and Stephanwitch stepped forth from the dark corner, smiled, and faded away like a little cloud.

“And this is I!” said the voice again, and from the dark corner stepped the woman and the child. The woman smiled, the child laughed, and then they, too, vanished.

“And this is I!” and the old woman and the boy stepped forward, smiled, and vanished. Then a light filled the little room and glowed about the figure of a Child and Martuin heard the words:

“For I was an hungered and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger and ye took me in.” And Martuin knew that the Christ-child had really come to him that Christmas-tide. (Adapted.)

GOD REST YE, MERRY GENTLEMEN