COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL December 23, 2015
“Holden” On To A
Christmas Miracle!
Merry Christmas
Dad & Ellie Woolcott
Dearest Readers,
do not just write about pets
and miracles, I live a life
“fi lled with miracles” and am
the author of “Expect Miracles”
and “A Christmas Filled With
Miracles”.
Here is my favorite miracle
wrapped beautifully in holiday
spirit. Christmas eve 40 years
ago my husband, Howard, and I
prepared for an unusual, possi-
bly depressing, Christmas holi-
day because my stepfather, Jim,
had terminal cancer. But, never
in a million Christmases did we
expect to end up immersed in a
miracle!
At the time, as newly webs
living of Vancouver Island in
Canada, we had to take the
macy” stood as the ammunition
in his war against pain and ill-
ness. A heaviness hung in the
air as if the Spirit of Christmas
had yet to make an appearance,
or had refused to board the ferry
with us, purr-furring instead to
remain behind on the Island with
all of our friends and neighbors.
So, we decided to make an early
night of it and all went to bed.
I was the fi rst to awaken on
Christmas morning, the most
magical day for children ev-
erywhere. Everyone else in the
household was still peacefully
asleep so even though it was
only 7:00 a.m., I decided to call
my best friend, Rita, back on
Vancouver Island; after all, her
giggling children would have
awakened her hours ago. “Hel-
she was an 80-year old widow.
Her deceased husband, Dick,
and she did not have any chil-
dren. She continued that she had
no reason to get up, as she had
no one to share Christmas with.
ferry from Nanaimo to reach
mainland Vancouver, and my
parents’ home. Along with the
usual assortment of luggage and
Christmas gifts, we also packed
our “traveling trouble-adors”
Channel and Camelot, Shaded
Silver Persian cats whose fl uffy,
white winter coats resembled
the cuffs on Santa’s red jacket.
For our “listening pleasure”
they meowed their way to our
holiday destination.
A torrential downpour greet-
ed us in Vancouver, the weather
thus matching our moods. As
we pulled up to my childhood
home, it’s Christmas lights
sparkliness transfi xed me, trans-
porting me back in time to when
my sister was still alive and
my brother home, versus half
a world away in Australia. My
how things have changed over
the years! We opened the car
doors and out leapt the cats,
eager to re-explore the familiar
territory.
I entered the house through
the back door into the kitchen
where Jim’s well-stocked “phar-
lo”, she answered in a weak,
“crackly” voice. “Rita, are you
all right?!”, I asked. “Who is
this?!”, a total stranger replied.”
Oh! Oh! Apparently, the busy
holiday phone lines had crossed
resulting in awakening an el-
derly woman. I apologized for
waking her, but she said, “Not
to worry. It is nice to have some-
one to talk to, as I don’t have
anything to do today, nor any-
one to talk to.”
No one is a stranger to me, so
we began chatting.
I had phoned Rita on the Is-
land, which is a long-distance
number, so I was curious as to
where this woman lived. “Burn-
aby,” she said. About 10 miles
away!
I used to be a PBX switch-
board operator and know that
when many phones are in use
“wires” get crossed. But, how
could this be? She only lived
a few miles away when their
phone numbers and area codes
weren’t even close!
Introducing herself, she said
that her name was Faith and that
She was “glad” I phoned, “A bit
of a Christmas gift.” She was
all alone, while we at least had
each other. Yet, she considered
this “wake up” call to be a gift!
Faith and I talked for an hour.
My mother awakened in the
meantime so I asked her if Faith
could share Christmas dinner
with us and she said, “Yes.”
Faith hung up the phone and
hurriedly dressed to catch a bus
for her visit. Little did the bus
driver or us know that he would
really be delivering a Christmas
miracle.
Excitedly anticipating the ar-
rival of our “mystery” guest, our
home’s atmosphere was trans-
formed from “doom and gloom”
into JOY, the delicious aroma of
the holiday turkey wafting from
the oven, all through the house.
I met the “gift” of Faith at
the bus stop; we smiled at each
other. As a child, I frequently
“rescued” stray animals, but this
new rescue was much more ful-
fi lling, resulting in a wonderful
visit, sharing a delicious meal
and lots of laughter!
I
Love & a Hug,
Jodie & Rodger
Photo by Mr. Angel Scribe
Mary Ellen and Myster E. wish you a wonderful holiday
and a New Year fi lled with JOY and health.
Douglas G. Maddess, DMD
FAMILY AND GENERAL DENTISTRY
Brightening Lives One Smile at a Time
G U I D E
R
estaurant
See our new website:
douglasgmaddessdmd.com
7A
After dinner, Faith and I
donned our coats in prepara-
tion to drive her home but we
were sidetracked by a miracle
so extraordinary that we are still
in awe of it after all of these
years!
Faith and my mother were
saying their last “Good-byes!”
when my mother realized that
we had not shared last names.
“What is your last name?”, my
mother asked her, to which Faith
replied, “Holden.”
“No!” my mother said not
understanding, “That’s OUR
last name. What is YOUR last
name?”
We all experienced the shock
of our lives when Faith, looking
confused and repeated, “That is
MY last name. Holden. H-o-l-d-
e-n.”
I had never told Faith our last
name; this was years before
the internet, so she could not
have looked us up. What are
the odds? The same last name,
Holden, spelled the exact same
way!
How had we been divinely
put together with someone with
the same family name?
What a miraculous, Divine,
coincidence! Obliviously, the
universe was saying, “Family is
not by birth alone, but also by
Divine appointment. We are all
one!”
Still in shock, (and our coats),
we sat down on the living room
couch beside the ticking grand-
father clock, unprepared for
even more as-yet-to-be-revealed
surprises as Faith shared the
story of her life. Her husband
was from England, as was my
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