Chris - Christmas Angel

By Ivalien Hylton Belcher © 1984

Issue: December, 1984

Ivalien Hylton Belcher and her grandson Christopher Ron (Chris). Shortly after this article appeared a tragic accident claimed the life of Ivalien's only child Ron and her only grandchild Chris.Another year has passed swiftly by and its my favorite time of year, Christmas. The birthday of Jesus is the most joyous and sacred day of the whole year. It is a day of household activities, family reunions and joy for children. The three Wise Men brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh when they visited the infant Jesus in the stable. The custom of giving gifts probably stems from this source. As the month of December begins, I find myself searching the sky for the Star of Bethlehem. This star is always a part of my Christmas. Every time I see it, there's a special feeling. Now that Christmas is here, let me share a special gift that God gave my family.

Christopher Ron (Chris) is my little grandson. January 27th, he will be two years old. At the age of three months, the doctors discovered that Chris had a heart problem. Heart surgery was performed when he was six months old. These were sad times for us. Chris is a strong boy and did well, even amazing the doctors. Of course, we were overjoyed and so thankful.

I have seen Chris take his first steps and now he can take walks with me. We both love the outdoors and share so many things. Chris is a big talker and has a big vocabulary. His smile lights up his whole face and people say to him, "Hello Sunshine." You can see that God sent our family a special gift by sending us Chris, and giving him the gift of life. This is our Christmas Angel. Thank you Lord for loaning Chris to us for awhile. I wrote the following poem for Chris:

Your eyes are like the Heavens blue
Your forehead smooth and high,
Cheeks like a red rose
God's hand stroked it as you went by.

You have a smile of bliss.
The Angels must have given you a kiss.
God sent our family you, Chris dear.
Now our Christmas Angel is here.

Love, Grandma Ivalien