The Twelve Days of Christmas

The Twelve Days of Christmas
From Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Blessings of Christmas
By Andy Skidmore

A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.
~Author Unknown

I was watching TV one evening and saw a special segment on helping cancer patients through the holiday season. They were giving tips on how to make an anxious time for them easier and cheerier. One lady said she and her friend always hit all the after-Christmas sales, buying Christmas wrapping and bows at 75–85 percent off so they'd be ready for the next year. When her friend became ill and couldn't join her for the bargain shopping, she bought double the amount and shared her purchases with her friend. It seemed like a small gesture, but it said volumes about their friendship and hope for the future.

The TV segment reminded me of a special Christmas I had shared with a dear friend who was battling cancer. Twelve days before Christmas, I began to sing her "The Twelve Days of Christmas." Each day, I appeared at her door, rang the bell, and sang the verse for that day as I handed her a gift that in some way symbolized that verse. The first day's gift was a basket of pears with an artificial bird tied on the ribbon. The second day's gift was a soap dish with two bars of Dove soap, and so on. I only sang the verse, handed her the gift and then quickly returned to my car and drove away — no chitchat, hugs, or explanation. After the second day, she realized there was more fun to come. She said she tried to guess what the gift would be. The gifts were never expensive, just creative. (Keep reading)