It was Christmas Eve. As excited as Lolly was for this night, she was also sad. Day after tomorrow, Pa would be returning to Louisiana. Every time he left she hated it. As Grandma Toady said, “Dreading the future was wasting now.” So, Lolly pushed the thought away from her. She was in the backseat of Estelle’s newly repaired and painted Volkswagen Beetle. It had cost a small fortune to get the car fixed. Munch was actually grounded for the first time in his life. Tonight he was quiet. The rift between he and Pa was not mended, but they could be in the same space at the same time without Munch being openly hostile. It was a start. It was enough for now.

Overhead the stars looked down on them. When she was a little girl, Lolly used to look for the Christmas star every year, like Linus in the Peanuts looked for the Great Pumpkin. In the front seat, Estelle drove and Pa was her happy passenger. Lolly was eleven years old the last time she had spent Christmas with Pa. What had it been like for him to be at work when he knew they were celebrating? It must have been awful. It was no wonder he was so happy this year.

It was the tradition of the Dutchendorph household to attend Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. Lolly had never been to Mass before, much less one at Midnight. She did not know what to expect. It felt a little weird being dressed up this late at night. When they reached the church in a tiny town named Damon, the parking lot around the church was full. Estelle had to park across the street by the Catholic Cemetery. Mr. Dutchendorph was buried there.

Earlier that day, Trevor had called. He told her he and his family were going to Midnight Mass at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in Corpus Christi. They were spending Christmas in their new beach house. Amber had to go to work on Saturday, so Trevor was hoping his folks would let him go home with her. If they said, no, Trevor wouldn’t be home until New Year’s Day. It seemed like such a long time.

The stained glass windows of the church were full of light. The colors, the scenes were like a magic lantern box. The night air had the right nip of cold in it. When they crossed the street to the church, Pa and Estelle held hands. To, Lolly’s surprise Munch grabbed her hand. Things were better between them. That was what mattered. He was also talking to his mom again. He had not spoken about the car theft or accident, but since it had happened he had stopped the deep freeze. He was evening working on the dress his mom wanted to wear for her wedding.

Inside the church, was so different from the Baptist Church where Lolly and Grandma Toady went upon inspired occasion. There were statues of people in this church. It was ornate. At the front of the church to Lolly’s right was a statute of Mary. She looked out across the congregation with cool and patient eyes. There was something about her that made Lolly feel different. All her life she had heard the Christmas story. This statue embodied the young girl who had given birth. Until recently Lolly had never thought about how young Mary was when she had Jesus. Estelle had given her the book, Two From Galilee to read during the Christmas break. It was a fictionalized novel set in history. Mary had not been any older than Lolly and yet as woman of ancient times, she bore so much more responsibility than Lolly could even imagine and as a woman she had so little value and even less say in the life she lived.

Before Estelle and Munch sat down in the pew, they each knelt and crossed themselves. Their eyes looked up to the Crucifix. It like the statue of Mary was beautifully carved. What artist had made these statues? In her church there was not a bit of art, just a little colored glass.Inside the church, the stained glass windows were dark. Lolly wanted very much to see what they looked like with the morning sun spilling through them.

The service was different from any she had ever been to. Pa was a bit nervous as he sat through this traditional service. In Vietnam he had lost his belief in God. In Vietnam his sister had found her calling from God. Why was life like that? Until this night Lolly hadn’t thought about her Aunt Michelle on Christmas Eve. Every Christmas Eve, she attended a service like this. It made Lolly feel connected to her, in a new way.

Candles flickered on the altar. The voice of the congregation spoke and responded to the words of the Priest. This is what Trevor had experienced every Christmas of his life. Lolly had not thought much of Christmas Traditions until this year. Next year, she would here with Estelle and Munch, and if they were very fortunate, Pa would be with them.

When the service was over, Estelle proudly introduced Pa to the Priest. He was a kind man with warm brown eyes. He shook Pa’s hand. Unlike what her church did to visitors, the Priest did not ask him to come again or if he knew Jesus. He simply said, “Thank you for coming.”

Pa nodded.

Outside the stars shone so brilliantly. One seemed to wink at Lolly. Was it the faded Christmas Star?

*

The sun was just cresting the horizon. It was Christmas morning. Pa was home! Lolly gave Fluff a big hug and rushed out her bedroom door. In the living room the aluminum tree squealed as the color wheel turned at the bottom of it. The light it cast was barely visible because one of its light bulbs had burned out. Pa sat in the recliner sipping coffee. He stood and Lolly flew into his arms. Pa said, “Merry Christmas, Short Cake.”

“Merry Christmas Pa.” The thump of Pa’s heart against her ear was the best gift. He was here, NOW. Here. She held on to the now of this moment.

Grandma Toady came into the living room with her coffee and a mug of hot cocoa for Lolly. She put the mugs down and wrapped her arms around the both of them. “Merry Christmas, you two!”

Together Pa and Lolly said, “Merry Christmas!”

They let go of each other and took their respective places in the recliner and on the couch. All they could do was grin at each other. Opening the gifts was secondary. In the background Elvis Presley sang Christmas carols on the stereo. It was a perfect Christmas morning. Lolly knew how rare they were. Fluff sauntered into the room and leapt up onto the couch. He nudged Lolly’s hand and she stroked his soft fur. It was just the four of them.

Presents were passed out. Pa had gotten Grandma Toady some beautiful fabric and a new cutting board. For Lolly he had chosen a silver heart necklace. Grandma Toady had made matching Christmas vests for Lolly and Pa. They put them on, and of course they fit perfectly. For Pa, Lolly had bought him a new red and black flannel shirt. His old one was looking pretty ragged. For Grandma Toady she had chosen new oven mitts with chickens on them and an apron to match. None of the gifts were expensive. Grandma Toady believed Christmas gifts should come from the heart, they shouldn’t cost much and they had to fit under the tree.

There was a knock at the door. Aunt Jessie came in with Bruno. She had come straight from work. Fluff took one look at Bruno, hissed and fled. Goofy, Bruno cocked his head as if he was confused by his reception. His next move was to attack everyone in the room with his affection. There was nothing quite like a Bruno kiss.

Aunt Jessie said, “Get down boy, and come here!”

The dog considered it momentarily and then he gave Lolly another lick.

Wearily, Aunt Jessie sat down on the couch between Grandma Toady and Lolly. Bruno jumped into her lap. Aunt Jessie stroked the pit bull’s head. “We had some crazies last night didn’t we boy? There is nothing like Christmas Eve to bring out the weird. Every bit of liquor in the cooler got bought. At first I was feeling sorry for myself because I was working and the kids were with Luke, but then I saw those people and I realized how fortunate I am. My life may not be what I hoped for, but it is good. Luke and the kids will be joining us for lunch at Estelle’s. He never keeps the kids away from me and he’s not spiteful. He’s a good man.” She sighed and leaned her head back against the couch.

Pa said, “That he is. Jessie, I have a question for you.”

“What?”

“Would you mind if I asked Luke to be my best man?”

Aunt Jessie sat up so fast, she almost knocked Bruno out of her lap. She looked at Pa and said, “No, I wouldn’t mind. You were friends before Luke and I ever met. Estelle wants Mitzi to be her flower girl and of course Mitzi is over the moon. And guess who the ring bearer is?”

Pa said, “Puccini.”

“Yup. That weird little bear is going to be in your wedding!”

Pa laughed and said, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Broadly, Aunt Jessie yawned. “I best get home and get a nap before the Dutchendorph shin dig.” She stood gave everyone a hug and said, “See you guys later.”

After Aunt Jessie left, Grandma Toady said, “I still don’t know if Jessie is ever going to do better than Luke.”

“I dunno,” said Pa. “I’m just glad she’s okay with him being my best man.”

The kitchen phone rang. Lolly went to answer it. A woman asked, "Collect call from Trinia Phelps will you accept the charges?"

"Yes," said Lolly. It was early on the West Coast. Why was Trinia up so early, or was it so late? Maybe she hadn't gone to bed yet.

A little too cheerfully her mother said, “Hey Sweetie! Its your mama!”

“Hi Mama. Good to hear from you.” It was. There were a few years she forgot to call on Christmas at all. In fact she was so little the last time she spent Christmas with her mother she couldn't even remember it.

Stifling a yawn, Trinia said, “I just got your gift in the mail yesterday. Sorry, its gonna be late.” The fact there was actually a gift on the way was nothing short of miraculous, unless of course it was a phantom gift only conjured into existence to grease the moment. Lolly hadn’t sent her anything because she had no idea where to send it. “How are you doing?”

“Good. I went to Christmas Mass last night. It was really cool.”

To Lolly's surprise, Trinia said, "I went to Mass last night too. When I was little, I used to go with my Grandma." This was new information. Without any kind of segway, her mother launched into the adventures of Trinia Phelps. It was the usual. "Before I forget, the episode of Police Woman I'm on will air January 6th, so please be sure and watch it."

"I will. I promise. We will have a watch party."

Trinia yawned and said, "That is so sweet. We're gonna do that here too. Well, I guess I better get. It was so good to hear your voice. Love you baby.”

“Love you too. Bye.” Lolly hung up the phone. She wondered who her mother was spending Christmas with this year.