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You could the two often them walking quite often. An old lady with her old dog. Those who had been living in this area for quite some time knew that they had been going on a walk in these streets on the same route for years. Most of the time, the lady’s face wasn’t visible, covered by the wide brim of her sun hat on sunny days, and hidden by the hood on rainy ones. In winter, she exchanged her sun hat for a bobble hat, though, and when she raised her face up from her big scarf, one could see her smiling. Every day that Christmas came closer, her smile became wider and brighter. Most people didn’t notice the change. No one knew that the story of this lady and her dog was a Christmas story.
Twelve years earlier, the old lady hadn’t been as old. Her job had drained her. First, her man had left her for a younger, more successful woman. She had never had the ambitions to become successful in her job. All she wanted to do was to care for people and look after them. That had been more than enough for her. But her working hours increased, together with the workload. In the beginning, she hadn’t had time for her friends anymore, then she had neglected her marriage and finally, herself. In the end, she had used up all of her energy and suddenly, she had ended up with way too much time on her hands and no one who was there for her.
And when the energy is used up, it takes a long time to replenish it. She managed to establish a routine. Up to this point, she had always had someone to look after. Now, she learned how to look after herself. Then, she felt lonely. Most of her friends worked in the same job as she had, and were just as overwhelmed as she had been. She didn’t have children either – first, her husband had asked her to wait and then, both of them had been too much engaged with their jobs. Finding new friends was difficult for a person her age. So, she went on walks all around the town and watched the people and animals in streets and in the park.
The hardest time to endure loneliness is Christmas time. Christmas decorations made it impossible to ignore the festive season. The films on television were full of lost souls who found love and happiness again, they broke her heart time and time again. Oh, how she wished to be one of those people. But she knew how unrealistic the plots of these films were. So, she didn’t decorate her flat, stopped watching Christmas films and tried to stay away from all seasonal events.
One day, she caught herself sneaking around behind the stalls of the Christmas market. It was early in the morning, not many people were around, and the sound of the Christmas songs didn’t reach her. Instead, she heard heart-wrenching whine. Not far from the stall, she noticed a cardboard box with a blanket inside. And the blanket was whining miserably.
When she came closer, she could make out what was written on the outside of the box. “Please take me with you, I don’t have a home anymore.” Suddenly, the blanket moved, and a head made its way out of the fabric. Big, dark eyes stared at her, from a small brown dog face. Their eyes met and for a moment, they stared at each other. She crouched in front of the box. “Hello little one,” she said quietly, “You’re just as lonely as me, aren’t you?” The dog stared at her and the rushing sound coming from the box indicated a wagging tail underneath the blanket.
She searched her handbag for something edible. The only thing she could find was a banana she had packed as a snack for herself. After a moment of hesitation, she peeled it, took a piece for herself and gave the dog another piece. In the end, she fed the whole banana to the dog. Then, she carefully stroked his head. It was warm. Despite the chilly air, the blanket seemed to keep him warm. And maybe he hadn’t been out here for very long.
“Now, what am I supposed to do with you?” she asked herself. The dog whined and pressed his head into her head. She couldn’t withstand his big, dark eyes for very long. She rose with a sigh; the dog’s eyes followed her movement. “Do you want to come with me? It’s much warmer in my flat.” The dog actually stood up and stepped out of the blanket. It was impossible to tell which kind of breed it belonged to, but the size of its paws indicated that it was still growing. She took the cardboard box and walked away. The dog followed suit.
When she returned to her flat, she noticed for the first time that the Christmas decorations were missing. She put the cardboard box on the floor and the dog crawled back into its blanket instantly. Then, she lit a candle. At least it felt a little bit more like Christmas this way. There were quite a few things in her fridge she could make a dog treat from but when she placed the bowl in front of the box, she noticed that the dog had fallen asleep. With a smile, she stroked its head and felt a warmth envelop her heart.
The vet confirmed that the dog was a young, healthy male, about seven months old, and unchipped. There was no way to find out about an owner. He was very trusting and cuddly and didn’t seem to want to leave her side. Every day, she told herself that she would that she would bring him to the animal shelter. Whatever she had expected her life to be like, there had never been a dog in the picture. She didn’t know much about dogs; it would be better for him if she gave him away. Instead, she went to the pet shop; bought a bed, dog food and a book about how to care for dogs. Every day, she put up some more Christmas decorations - in the end, she even bought a little Christmas tree. She gave the dog a name, Honey, because she had found him behind a stall which sold honey, and most of his fur was of a honey-like brown colour. She got herself the necessary papers and decided to adopt Honey for good.
In that year, Honey got a squeaky toy for Christmas, and she got her face licked. When Christmas was over and the new year began, she was able to smile again. The Christmas spirit stayed with her a lot longer than until the end of January.
Most people probably didn’t even notice the old lady with her dog but those who did may have wondered why the two of them always shared a banana when they took a break. For outsiders, this Christmas miracle might have been unimportant but for the two of them, the feeling of back then stayed strong in their hearts. At Christmas time, it radiated outwards, and you could spot it in her face and her eyes if you paid attention.