As Lee sat at the stoplight, he tried to make heads or tails of what the last 24-hours had just brought. Emotionally, he was exhausted and had been through the ringer. He was looking forward to a hot shower, a huge cup of coffee and then heading back to the hospital to see Amanda. Thankfully, it was Saturday so he didn't need to worry about getting the boys off to school. The sun was just beginning to light up the sky. The streets were all but abandoned at this early hour on a Saturday. The light turned green and Lee moved forward, continuing his journey home. Suddenly, he thought better of his destination and made a U-turn. There was something he had to do before heading home.

Zooming down the empty roads, Lee made some twists and turns until he finally arrived at his destination. Slowly, he got out of his car and walked across the frosty grass stopping only when he reached his parents' graves. He stood there for quite a while reading their headstones over and over again, wishing against all odds that there was some mistake and they were not really dead, and that at any moment they would be there to embrace him and tell him that the nightmare was over.

"You know…..I don't come here that often, at least not as often as I should…..I guess that it is too painful and I am sorry for that. It is not because I don't want to pay my respects to you both or that I don't think about you. In fact, I think about you all the time. I can't even tell you how much I wish you were here. My life is pretty great right now. I married Amanda, which you know…and we are expecting a baby. Growing up without you two, I think I convinced myself that I didn't want children-I thought of children as a bother and a burden. But now that we are expecting one of our own…..I honestly can't think of anything I want more in this world. I have two great step-sons, too: Philip and Jamie. They really are great young men. I love them like they were my own."

Lee took a moment to collect his thoughts before he continued.

"Amanda was hurt yesterday-she was in a car accident. She's going to be ok, but it scared the life out of me. I don't know what I would do without her. Thankfully, I found her and got her to the hospital in time…funny thing is Mum, that I feel like you were the one that helped me find her. If that deer hadn't have been in the road when I came around the corner, I never would have stopped. And it didn't run away at first, it just stood there looking at me and then ran down the hill to Amanda. It was bizarre. When I found Amanda, she was mumbling to someone and then later in her CT scan, they told me that she was looking for someone named Jenny and then last night…she was saying some things that have me really wondering if you were talking to her in some way."

Lee looked at his mother's headstone as if it would answer him back. He swallowed hard to try and keep the tears from forming.

"I had a chat with Harry Thornton last night. I never knew that you had been friends. He told me a little about you two…..it made me feel closer to you both. I found out that you, Mum, were known as Jenny to close friends and that you only ever called dad Matthew."

Lee smiled a small, crooked smile.

"I sure wish that we had had more time together….And I hope that…..well, I hope that I make you proud…I am not sure why I felt so compelled to come out here this morning. I guess I just needed to feel closer to you given the emotional rollercoaster I have been on in the last 24-hours…..and to just let you both know that I love you."

Lee stood in silence gathering his thoughts, missing his parents. As he bid them good-bye, he looked up and found that he was not alone. A lone deer stood watching him. As their eyes met, the deer gently bowed her head at Lee and trotted away.

"Thank you" Lee whispered as he made his way back to the corvette.

2 Days Later

Philip, Jamie and Dotty waited anxiously for the car to pull in the driveway. They were excited that Amanda was coming home. Finally, they heard the car door shut as Lee made his way over to help Amanda out of the passenger seat.

"I am so glad to be home." Amanda said as she walked in through the back door of her cheery kitchen.

"Mom!" Jamie shouted as he and Philip ran to hug their mother.

"Easy! Easy boys! She is recovering from a concussion! You don't want to give her another one." Dotty said as she pushed her way into the crowd to hug her daughter. "Oh, Amanda, come sit down and I will make you a cup of cocoa."

Lee walked in the door carrying Amanda's bag and a new key chain.

"They just dropped off the loaner car while I was outside. They said we can have it until we can get our car situation straightened out."

"Oh good!" Amanda said.

"Hey, boys. Why don't you go check out the new wheels?" Lee encouraged.

"Cool!" Philip said as he dashed out the back door with Jamie close behind.

"From Leatherneck?" Amanda asked.

"Yup and he said don't worry about getting it back any time soon."

"Amanda, dear? Why don't you lie down on the couch and take a rest?" Dotty said as she brought Amanda her cocoa.

"That's a great idea, Amanda", Lee interjected before Amanda could object. "And while you rest, I am going to take the boys on a top secret mission. Dotty, do you mind looking out for Amanda while we are gone. It should only take an hour or so."

"Not at all, Lee. Take your time."

Lee leaned down and kissed Amanda gently but full of passion. His eyes danced with happiness as he looked at Amanda, safe in their home.

"Love you" she said.

"Love you, too" he replied. "Come on, boys! Let's take 'er for a spin!" Lee shouted as he walked out the door.

"Thanks for the cocoa, Mother. It really is so good to be home!" she said sipping out of her mug.

"It is so good to HAVE you home. You scared us half to death. And Lee….oh Amanda I have never seen him like that ever. He was so….so lost and scared. He really loves you. He was beside himself until he heard that you and the baby were going to be ok."

"I am sorry I scared you all."

"Oh, it wasn't your fault, darling! We are just all so glad that you are ok. Why don't you lie down here and rest. The doctors said that you need a lot of rest for the next week."

"OK, Mother. I think I will."

Amanda closed her eyes and said a silent prayer of thanks that she was back among her family in her own house. She drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

"Careful, jerk face! You're going to make me drop it!" Philip shouted at his brother.

"It's not my fault!" Jamie snapped back.

"Boys! Enough! Let's just get this thing in the house." Lee commanded as he opened the front door. "Ok, bring it right into the living room. The stand is over there in the corner."

Amanda opened her eyes at the sound of Lee's voice coming from the other room. Slowly she got up off the couch to investigate what was going on. As she pulled open the doors that separate the living room from the family room, she heard the men yell "SURPRISE!"

Amanda gasped in excitement! "Oh! A tree! You went out and got a Christmas Tree!"

"Yeah, Mom! We actually got to cut this one! Lee let me use the saw and everything!" Philip exclaimed.

Amanda looked at Lee and smiled.

"It was cool, except now I am covered in pine sap." Jamie said trying to rub the sap from his hands onto his pants.

"Oh fellas, this is such a great coming home present!"

"Mom? Can we decorate it tonight?" Jamie asked.

"Yeah and have cocoa and Christmas cookies?" Philip added.

"I think we can absolutely decorate it tonight, but you guys are going to have to get the decorations out of the garage. Cocoa, I think we can handle, but I don't think I am up for making Christmas cookies today. Sorry, Philip."

"Uh, I already thought of that" Lee said. "I asked Dotty if she would mind making some last night."

"Alright!" the boys exclaimed in unison.

"Let's go get the boxes!" Philip said as the two ran to the garage.

Lee wrapped his arms around Amanda's waist and pulled her into a loving embrace.

"Thank you, Lee. You don't know how special this is to me. I know it wasn't easy for you."

"It was a lot easier than you would think. Besides, me and the boys had a great time picking the right tree."

"Thanks for thinking about the Christmas cookies…..it's kind of a tradition here between me and the boys."

"I have a new tradition for you and me."

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

"Well, I know that one of the things you love about Christmas is taking out the ornaments and reminiscing about the stories each one tells. So, I thought that we could start our own tradition of giving each other an ornament each year. What do ya think?"

Amanda looked up at Lee and smiled.

"I love it."

"Good…..wait right here."

Amanda sat on the couch and breathed in the scent of the freshly cut pine tree. The house was beginning to smell like Christmas. Lee returned with a small package wrapped in red and green foil paper. He handed it to Amanda and smiled. Amanda took the box and carefully tore off the paper. Inside, she found a smaller box, wrapped in brown paper and tied with twine. As she inspected the box, she saw that it was a tiny package and on it was written an addressee: To the Man in the Red Hat, October 1983. Amanda cradled the ornament in her hands and smiled a smile that lit up her entire face.

"It's just something that I made a couple of days ago…..I thought it would be a nice memento. I hope you like it." Lee said almost nervously.

"I love it…..you couldn't have given me anything more perfect."

Amanda leaned over and kissed Lee. His small gesture had warmed her heart in ways she had not expected.

"Hey MOM!" Philip bellowed.

"Philip! I'm right here! You don't have to scream! What is it?"

"The mailman just dropped off a package for you. I am leaving it on the counter."

"I'll get it. You stay here."

Lee returned with the box and handed it to Amanda.

"So many surprises today! I wonder what this is? I don't recognize the return address." Amanda opened the box and found a letter on top of a sealed padded envelope. "Oh! It's from the Colonel!"

"My uncle, the Colonel?"

"Yup. 'Dear Amanda….Please find the enclosed as a surprise for Skip. I have had this for years and haven't really given it any thought. Then, starting last week, I kept having dreams saying that I was supposed to send it to you. I know it sounds crazy, but something in me said don't ignore the dreams. Hope everyone is well. Say hi to Skip for me.' Huh…..well I guess this is for you. Open it."

Amanda handed Lee the padded envelope. Lee took it in his hands, wondering what it could be. Carefully he pulled open the flap to reveal a small wooden sheriff's badge. The yellow paint had chipped off the edges of the star, but the word "SHERIFF" was still clearly visible. A loop of rawhide was threaded through the single hole in the uppermost point of the star. Lee held the prize in his right hand as he carefully traced the edges with the index finger of his left hand.

"Amanda…this is my…."

Amanda saw tears begin to form in Lee's eyes as the emotion began to well within him. She, too was brought to tears over this discovery.

"It's the Sheriff's Badge ornament your father gave you for Christmas when you were 4!"

Lee looked at Amanda in shock.

"How did you know that?"

Amanda thought for a moment. She wasn't sure how she knew that. There was something nagging at her about this transaction. In the back of her mind she heard a voice talking to her: "I have arranged for something special to arrive at your house in a few days. It took a lot of convincing to get it there! You will understand when you see it. Make sure that you tell Lee it's from me. I am not sure he will believe you, but try anyway."

Amanda looked at Lee just as confused as he was.

"I'm not sure how I know but I think….Lee, I think your mother told me when I was in the car. Is that possible? And I am supposed to tell you that the ornament is from her. She didn't think you would believe me but I am supposed to tell you that anyway."

Amanda could hardly believe the words that were coming out of her mouth. She knew how ridiculous they sounded, but they felt as true and as real to her as if Lee's mother was standing before them now. She looked at Lee with a bewildered look on her face. He knew what she was saying was true. He didn't need convincing. He squeezed the badge tight in his hand and wrapped his arms around Amanda. Neither said a word.

The lights on the decorated tree twinkled and emitted a soft light into the living room. Lee sat on the couch looking at his sheriff's badge hanging on his first real Christmas tree in over 30 years. Amanda lay sleeping next to him with her head in his lap and her hands resting on her pregnant belly. He lightly stroked her hair as they sat in the quiet of the evening. Lee began to feel contentment and happiness. He wondered if this was the beginnings of the Christmas Spirit that everyone is always talking about. Lee leaned his head back and shut his eyes.

Jenny sighed as she felt her son's contentment. It was a melancholy moment for her. She wanted so badly to be a part of his life and not merely an observer, but she understood that this was not meant to be. Her eyes smiled as she saw Lee's sheriff badge dangle from the Christmas tree's branch. After all these years, she knew her son was finally going to have a happy Christmas again. As Lee drifted off to sleep, she placed a single kiss upon his forehead and whispered, "Merry Christmas, my darling and many, many more."

The End