Free Gifts; Chapter 3

 

Free Gifts; Chapter 3

© 2024 by Amber Wright

Date: Christmas Eve, 1888

Place: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Truly, the best in life is often free.

“Boots is just the thing I need!” declared a woman who Mr. Agape knew to be a gossiper. “Where can I find my size?”

Mr. Agape led the way to the row of boots. He cringed inside for he knew the woman’s feet size from observation:

Busybody. But he pulled down different boot sizes for her to choose from. To his dismay and prediction her shoe size was Busybody.

The woman smiled. “How perfect they fit! Now, which boots should I get? I don’t really know…” her words trailed.

“Here.” Mr. Agape picked up a very old style but very new leather pair of boots.

“This is the best. You will wear these nicely for they never age like the others boots do. They hold much better.”

The woman began opening her purse but Mr. Agape stopped her. “No, these are free, my good lady. But I trust you will wear these always, right?”

“How could I not?” the woman gushed. “They are so beautiful.”

“Remember.” Mr. Agape said simply and handed her the fine pair of boots of which name brand was: Truth. “Goodbye.”

The woman thanked him and left the shop, and Mr. Agape hoped that she would remember and always walk on truth and not on falsehood.

Carollers singing wafted in through the shop as the door squeezed to a shut.

• • •

“I want a toy,” a girl said with a pouty bottom lip. “A stuffed bear.”

The girl’s mother spoke sharply, “I told you we came here to look. You have enough gifts wrapped under our tree back home. Remember?”

“But I want a stuffed bear from here!” the girl wailed, and Mr. Agape stepped up.

“A stuffed bear?” he smiled with twinkling eyes. “I have just the one for you.”

“Really,” the woman said halfway apologetically, “she has more than she needs.”

Mr. Agape pulled out a very cute stuffed bear and handed it to the girl. “Do you like this one?”

The little girl nodded brightly. “Yes. I want it.”

Mr. Agape smiled for on the stuffed bear’s chest was gold thread spelling out the Scripture verse: The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

The woman opened her purse and gave her girl a stern look. “You get your way—again!”

“No money, lady.” Mr. Agape shook his head with a wave of his hand. “The stuffed bear is for free.”

“Well, thank him,” the woman snapped at her daughter.

“Thank you,” the little girl hugged her bear tightly.

“Ah, but wait.” Mr. Agape hurried over to the shelf of perfume and picked up a bottle. “Here, for the mother. Take this, and Merry Christmas to you both!”

The woman took the bottle of lavender perfume labeled: Gentleness, and thanked the shopkeeper before leaving.

• • •

A girl with silky curls paced the aisles wearing a pursed frown, and never glanced at Mr. Agape once while she rummaged through the shop. After a few minutes he stepped up to her with a kind smile.

“What can I do for you, my girl?” Mr.

Agape asked, knowing the answer but not speaking it.

The girl shrugged. “Something else for Christmas. I have so many other things, but I’m missing something and I don’t know what. I have a dollar to spend as my last gift.”

“Well,” Mr. Agape stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Do you like scarves? I have a very beautiful sky blue scarf over there that would match your eyes just so. Would you care to look?”

The girl nodded once in a dull way and followed Mr. Agape to where the scarves were. When she saw the sky blue scarf that did match her eyes just so her dull expression changed and she pulled out her dollar.

“Just what I needed!” the girl spoke with a happy smile. “Thank you for helping me find it.”

“I will not only help you find it, my dear girl,” Mr. Agape closed her hand over the dollar. “I give it to you. It’s yours—for free.”

“Free?” the girl stared incredulously at the man. “Mine—for free?”

“Yes, yours for free.” Mr. Agape smiled and said warmly. “You cannot buy things that you hold in your heart.”

He picked up the end of the scarf to show her the label: Love. “By this your Christmas will be very complete. Merry Christmas, my girl, and give unto others as I have given unto you.”

“Thank you,” the girl blinked in surprise as she left the shop. She had found what she had been looking for…and it had been free, not to be bought with money.

• • •

“I doubt he’ll like it—but I’ll get it anyways,” a woman grumbled, tossing back her head and taking another look at the book called When Truth Prevails.

“Really, what would a twelve year-old boy want? He’s not into toys for he’s too old, and he’s too young to want clothing. Oh well, he’ll have to like it.”

Mr. Agape handed her a scarf to go along with the book. “Here’s something to keep him warm.”

“But—” the woman started to protest but ended in a cough.

“But those things are free, my lady.” Mr. Agape said with a smile, and the woman then took the scarf labeled: Thankfulness.

“Here is something for your cough. It will help both that and a lot of other things.”

Mr. Agape handed her a large bottle from underneath the counter. “Just take a teaspoonful a day and most ailments are sure to go.”

The woman then smiled, pleased. “Why, thank you.”

And then she took the large bottle labeled: Faith, and with her other free gifts she exited the shop.

Behind, Mr. Agape smiled. Outside the six o’clock bell clanged and now it was time to close his shop.

His business had been good that day. He had been successful, and now was the close of that day of Christmas Eve.

Mr. Agape locked the door and closed the shutters, and looked fondly around at all his other gifts that had not yet been given. There would be another day. There would be another time to give these gifts.

These free gifts.