When life happens, and we feel things are going wrong, it can be good to step back and look at the big picture.
While rushing to get everything done on Christmas Eve, a woman almost fails to see a Christmas miracle.
I’ve written a good number of Christmas stories over the years, but for whatever reason, I was struggling horribly trying to come up with something to write for Hot Apple Cider’s call for Christmas story submissions for the next book, Christmas with Hot Apple Cider.
I still had a month to come up with a story, but Christmas was almost here and nothing had struck me as worth writing about.
So as it happened, I found myself that year on Christmas Eve craving lemon squares. Weird, I know. Lemon squares are traditionally a summer dessert, while shortbread and fruitcake are Christmas staples. But I have a tendency to be a bit outside the box with my food preferences.
Although there really wasn’t time before supper to mix up and bake the dessert, I decided to go ahead and do it anyway.
I won’t ruin the story for you, but let’s just say that between the hustle and bustle of trying to bake the squares, make and eat supper for myself and my husband, look after my dog, and not miss anything good happening in the movie that my husband was watching on our TV in the next room, a little Christmas miracle happened and the story “Explosion” wrote itself for me.
If you’ve read the story, as a little follow-up bonus, every so often, in some dark cupboard corner, or under an appliance, I still find a splinter of glass in my kitchen, even a couple of years later. I think this is God’s way of making sure I don’t forget that he’s watching over me and protecting me every day.
Shelley Norman draws inspiration for her writing not only from the One who gave her the gift but also from the family farm she operates with her husband, their animals, and the children who attend her home childcare. Shelley’s short stories have been published in various magazines, literary journals, and anthologies in Canada and the United States. She also has one published children’s book, Bruce County Counts (The Brucedale Press).