I waited for Robyn to leave the cemetery that morning and then I went over and looked at the grave stones. One said, “John Hurst” loving father. The other said, “Samantha Hurst” loving mother. The caption underneath it said, “The real Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus.” Underneath that it said, “Alas! How dreary would be the world if there was no Santa Claus! There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, and no romance to make tolerable this existence.
FRANCIS P. CHURCH, New York Sun, Sep. 21, 1897”
I couldn’t help but smile at that. These must be her parents, the ones that had taught her to have such an amazing heart and spirit of the season. The sight of their graves made me sad for her. They also made me wonder even more how she could have such a positive outlook on life. How could she be such a happy person when the two people she loved most in the world weren’t here any longer? I wondered about what she told me when I asked her how she was spending her holiday. She had simply said, “With my family.” Was this what she meant, or did she have extended family that she holidayed with?
I finally left. I felt like it wasn’t alright for me to be there without Robyn. I got back into my car and headed home. Although it no longer sounded so appealing, I still had a plane to catch. When I got home, I found a gift on my doorstep. I wasn’t really surprised when I read the note and saw that it was from Robyn.
“Do not open until Christmas day. If your plans change, I’d love to have you join me for Christmas dinner tomorrow. Come over any time.” There was an address there as well.
As usual, she left me smiling and shaking my head. She never gave up. Obviously, if she was inviting me to spend Christmas with her, she was alone just like I was. I’d been alone for a long time though… so long that I’d forgotten what a warm, happy Christmas was really like. I purposely tamped it all down, thinking there was no reason to think about it since I would never get it back. After a while, I’d stopped wanting to get it back. Then, I’d met Robyn. As I was lost in these thoughts, my eyes fell on the clock. I hadn’t realized that it had gotten late so fast. I grabbed my keys and raced out the door.
ROBYN