It's About the Love by MJ Schiller

There’s a lot of talk this time of year about the “true” meaning of Christmas. Whether you believe it to be about a babe born in a barn many centuries ago or about the spark of joy in your grandson’s eyes on Christmas morn, it’s all the same. Bottom line is, it’s about love.

I’d like to share with you my favorite Christmas present this year. Yes, I know it’s not even Christmas yet, but this gift came early. It came in the form of a doorbell ring this afternoon. When my husband got to the door, the gift-giver had vanished, leaving behind some sweet treats and this awesome note. Wyatt is my seven-year-old neighbor and such a blessing to me. Our neighborhood has aged, and when Wyatt and his ten-year-old sister Avery moved in, they were some of the only kids on the block. His mother apologized for all the noise he was making one morning, but I told her it was a joy to hear children’s voices again, and it was.

Two of my “kids” will be coming home this Christmas. They, and their sister, are twenty-seven years old (they are the male part of my triplets). Now, I know they aren’t exactly kids anymore, but at Christmas time, aren’t we all like a seven-year-old child?

Because they’ll be home, I’m decorating the house. If they weren’t, I probably would have skipped it this year. (Too much work!) But I know they will have certain expectations when they get home. They’ll expect Mom to have it all decked out as usual. I know particular decorations will make them nostalgic, and so I’ll decorate. One son requested Chicken Ala King, so I’ll make it. There will be a Yule log cake even though it requires making a cake, a filling, a ganache, and chocolate “bark” (frozen sheets of thin layers of chocolate that are scored to resemble bark, broken in pieces and “glued” to the cake with the ganache.)

But is it really about my kids returning to their childhood or about me returning to their childhood? I love looking back on those days when sleds were under the tree. When clues led my kids to the garage and a new basketball hoop. I love remembering the year that Xboxes were difficult to find and we told the kids that all the stores were sold out, and they were. That is, all the local stores were. Now, the Walmart in a neighboring small town, that was different. My eldest FREAKED OUT when we told her to look under the ottoman she was sitting on and she found the Xbox.

This year will be different. For one, we won’t be opening presents. The kids have already gotten their gifts. One son will be bringing along his girlfriend, and their dog; that’s different. Our girls will be missing; that’s not like the old days when all four sat on the stairs in birth order before descending on Christmas morning. But to have my boys here will be so special. Different can be good too.

So, in the end it’s not about the treats you bring to neighbors; it’s about the love that went into the baking, and the gratitude you feel for the friendships you’ve developed over the years. It’s not about what’s on the table; it’s about who is gathered there. It’s about the smiling faces on the family photos that come with your Christmas cards and the warmth you get from seeing those smiles. As the Grinch discovered, it’s not about “jingtinglers” or “floofloovers”, or “tartinkas,” or even the “roast beast” or “Who hash;” it’s about spending time with one another. It’s all about that love thing I talked about earlier.

I hope your Christmas is filled with love and laughter, friends and family, and maybe a few happily-ever-afters.

Now, you’d think that a woman with over 30 books available to purchase would have at least a handful of Christmas stories, wouldn’t you? Especially someone like me, who loves Christmas. But I don’t. I have just the one romantic suspense, UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR. So as things begin to slow down here, be sure and treat yourself to some quiet moments. Just you, a book, some hot chocolate, and a little Christmas…murder?

Dylan Fisher is an EMT and part-time Santa Claus at a mall in Denver, Colorado.

He has logged plenty of time with children sitting on his lap asking for anything from the latest electronic gadget to a week’s worth of homework passes, but he never heard anyone ask for what little Delaney Kelly asked for on one snowy night in December. A dad! When Dylan’s eyes search the crowd for Delaney’s mother and land on Keira Kelly, the paramedic almost finds himself in need of a little CPR. She is stunning.

Keira Kelly is still grieving over the loss of her husband…

… but a reckless driver has her thinking about nothing but survival as she’s headed home from the mall. When Keira wakes in the hospital to find a hunky EMT at her bedside, she begins having a few thoughts that would put her on Santa’s Naughty List for sure.

Neither is ready for what is coming UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR.

When she finds out the EMT is only hanging around because the police believe someone is out to get her, she’s not sure what to think about his kindness. Is he helping her because he wants to or because he feels he needs to? And what about the man who rammed her car, could he have had something to do with her husband’s death?

To purchase UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR, click here: https://books2read.com/Upon-A-Midnight-Clear

It’s only 99 cents!

To find other M.J. Schiller books, click here: https://www.amazon.com/stores/M.J.-Schiller/author/B009JOQFQQ

And be sure to sign up for her newsletter to hear of new releases: https://maryschiller.wixsite.com/contact-page


HAPPY HOLIDAYS!