It's been an emotional journey for Steve having lost Abbey after thirty-some years of being happily married. With the passing of time, he thinks about moving on yet hesitates. While encouraged by those around him, Steve seeks a sign, a whisper, something mere words cannot express.

With two families coming together in celebration of a double wedding on Christmas Eve at the old farmhouse surrounded by woods and pastures and a majestic barn full of reindeer, the magic of the season demonstrates yet again anything can happen. Sleighs pulled deep into the woods by mighty horses bring loved ones to yet another place full of wonder and surprise as a gift wrapped inside a worn-out trunk full of special things left to a granddaughter by a grandmother she'd never know proves invaluable.

What sounds like violins -- like harps being played and a chorus singing from somewhere amidst the pine and birch trees offer reassurance as snow angels lie in wait and eternal love spreads its wings, reaching beyond the mountain tops.

Christmas wrapped in new beginnings by old traditions makes a most astonishing season-unforgettable.

Barbara Briggs Ward is a writer living in Ogdensburg, New York. Her short story "The Kitchens" was third runner-up in The Saturday Evening Post's 2021 Great American Fiction Contest. She is the author of a beloved Christmas trilogy for adults featuring The Reindeer Keeper, (chosen by Yahoo!'s Christmas Books Club as their December 2012 Book of the Month), The Snowman Maker, and The Candle Giver. Other works of fiction include The Tin Cookie Cutter, A Robin's Snow, and Velvet Snowflakes. Her short stories have appeared in three Chicken Soup for the Soul books and Highlights for Children. Her essay centered around her grandmother was one of eight essays selected to appear in Ladies Home Journal, July 1976, highlighting women who represent the "Real Beauties of America." Barbara's feature on Boldt Castle was published in McCall's. She has been a featured author on Mountain Lake PBS and Target Book Festivals in Boston and New York. For more, visit barbarabriggsward.com.