This morning, I was heading out about 9:30 to pick up a pie and some things for our Christmas morning breakfast. I had on my coat and hat, keys in hand. As I opened in the inside door, my 6 year-old grand daughter Mackenzie runs up to me. She takes my hand and says, "Pa, could you please buy me a Christmas dress?"
"Didn't your mommy buy you one?", I asked.
"We went shopping with Aunt Peggy, but we didn't find anything in the stores that fit me or wasn't itchy."
"Oh", I said. I looked into the sad eyes and there wasn't any way I could say no. I would disappoint this sweet little girl. Still, I figured it would be very hard to find one so late.
"Listen, I don't know if there will be anything left in the stores sweetheart, it's Christmas eve."
She looked up at me. "Please, Pa, please", she implored.
I squatted down to her.
"If Jesus has somehow saved a dress for you, I promise to look for it."
Mackenzie hugged me, with a big squeeze. "Okay Pa".
I climbed into the Jeep and reordered my priorities. Before I bought anything else, I was going to find her a dress.
I felt a strong urge to drive over to Kohls. When I arrived, the parking lot was packed. Yet, somehow, the store wasn't as crowded as I feared, and the lines were short. I headed for the little girl's department. I was thinking to myself, if the Lord wants Mackenzie to have her dress, it'll be there.
I spotted a rack of little girl Christmas dresses. The first ones were either too big or too small. I knew that the material on most of these was the type that Mackenzie didn't like, because they were itchy to wear. Still, I held that there will be something perfect. I went around to the other side of the rack. Same types. Except, that tucked towards the back, in between the dresses she wouldn't like, was a dress of a different material. I pulled it out. It was a knit-like material, soft and supple. It would not itch. It was red, had a bow on the front and a tie bow on the back. Most importantly, it was a size 7. Also on the hanger was a matching dress for a doll.
A lady also scouring the rack looked at me and said, "it's hard buying a dress when you don't have the child with you to try it on."
"I know", I said. "But, this one will fit her perfectly, I have no doubt."
To go with the dress, my next challenge was to find tights. I walked over to that section, and on the end of the rack was a package of tights. Two pair, one white, one pink. Again, her size.
When I got home, I brought in the dress and tights. Mackenzie hugged me for a long time, saying "thank you Pa" over and over.
"Thank Jesus, honey. He made sure you had your Christmas dress."
Her eyes shining, she looked up and said, "thank you Jesus".
We dressed her doll and then she tried on her dress. It fit perfectly.
Later in the afternoon, when her mom came home from work, she carried in a new Christmas dress. Just like that, there were two. We all laughed at the situation. Her mom told Mackenzie that she could pick which dress to wear tomorrow. The other one would be for New Years Day. She thought about it for a little while and then announced her decision. She would wear the one Pa brought home.
Why?
Because she really, really wanted to match her doll...
Merry Christmas to all!
