The Inside Story of “Three Christmases I Will Never Forget” by Bill Bonikowsky 

Writing a “true story” can be difficult.

The resiliency of love, wrapped in three unforgettable Christmases.

When the opportunity was presented to submit something for Christmas With Hot Apple Cider, I searched my memory banks for some special event connected with Christmas that might make for an interesting tale.

One did come to mind. But a short time of reflection led me to realize that three very important events in my life happened at Christmas time—and a larger story connecting them all formed the framework for my piece.

But writing the story wasn’t just a matter of sitting down and retelling what had happened.

No, in my case, as I wrote about some of the more difficult aspects of my journey, I found myself re-living the kind of moments that wring raw emotion from the heart.

But it’s a story filled with happiness, too.

And in the re-telling of it, I caught a glimpse of my God smiling in the background as He wove together all the threads, both dark and light, to form a new garment that I hadn’t asked for or anticipated, but which fit perfectly.

“Three Christmases I Will Never Forget” covers a span of 50 years.

I will never forget the process of writing this story. It forced me to re-visit events that, seen now in their greater context, reminded me of God’s loving hand at work in my life even when my mind was on other things.

Bill Bonikowsky’s love for writing found expression when he served as editor of Youth for Christ’s Report to the People newsletter and as editor of the Alpha News for Alpha Ministries Canada. He was a contributing writer for the NIV Life Application Bible, and had stories published in A Second Cup of Hot Apple Cider and Hot Apple Cider With Cinnamon. Bill shared intimately on Facebook his experience of losing his wife of 45 years to cancer. Recently re-married, Bill lives with his wife, Shirley, in Nanaimo, British Columbia.

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