4. Kristopher. Definitely the worst off of the lot. Living in the park by the public library, he was a real mess. His ill-fitting clothes were filthy, his large belly stuck out from under the too small t-shirt he wore, and he had no shoes. Dead leaves and the remains of his last meal littered his beard. His breath was heavy with alcohol. Before giving him any money, I asked, "How did you become homeless?" His answer was mostly incoherent, but there was one phrase he repeated over and over:

"It happened when everybody stopped believing in me."

I don't know what became of him, nor what he did with the gift, because I never saw him again. Maybe he moved on, as the homeless sometimes do, and is living on the streets of another city. Maybe even your city, Virginia.

Many years ago, in response to another little girl's letter, a wise man wrote, "there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond."

It could be said the same is true of the Christmas spirit. But like that spirit, these things have been lost in our busy, workaday world. Now, people have faith in the almighty dollar. The poets are dead. Sexual harassment, and the restraining orders that often follow, have turned love and romance into a noble notion that many aspire to find but cannot because of fear.

And so it goes. We can't push aside the curtain and view the unseen world, because we're too blind to even see the real world before us.

Sorry to be such a downer, Virginia. At least your eyes are still wide open, able to see the wonders before you, and I hope they will remain so. Now, and forever.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Pete