Jacob’s Gift

On the corner of Elm and Seventh, sits a little toy shop whose owner is an old man with a happy disposition. He spends his days making wooden toys for boys and girls. A very appropriate thing to do when you live on the corner of a street named after a tree, don’t you think?
In the window of his shop sits wooden toys beautifully painted in happy colors. There are cars, trucks, trains, airplanes, dolls, doll houses with furniture and sitting in the corner of the display is a fine-looking small wooden piano. All year long and especially at Christmas time boys and girls stand at the wintery window display and wish for a toy from the toy makers’ workshop.
Our story begins when Mr. Fitz, that is the toy maker’s name, was putting the final touches on a very special wooden toy. Of course all his toys were special but this one was extra special because he designed it for his grandson Hansel.
Hansel was the son of the toy maker’s daughter. He lived in a magnificent house on a hill just a few miles from the toy shop. Hansel was very fortunate indeed. Anything he wanted he usually received. As a matter of fact, he had every toy and video game a boy would ever want. However, toys that are made of wood just, “Make me sick!” so he said. He certainly was given, “Too much too soon,” so Mr. Fitz said.
Concerned about his grandson’s coddling, grandfather decided to design a special wooden toy to help Hansel change his mind. With the utmost of care he carefully created a perfect wooden soldier with blue eyes – the color of Hansel’s eyes.
When the soldier was complete, grandfather said a very special prayer over the toy.
I give this wooden Captain to Hansel my grandson
I ask you God that somehow he would know that it was love
That carved for him this special toy from the wood so soft and white
May he know within his heart when he looks upon this toy
Sometimes it is the simple things that bring the greatest joy
Just as he finished the prayer, the big grandfather clock began to chime; six chimes announcing that it was time to leave for Hansel’s house.
“Oh my,” said grandfather, “it is six o’clock. I must not miss the Christmas Eve celebrations.”
He carefully placed the soldier into a special wooden box, put on his hat, coat, and scarf that were hanging on the wooden coat tree, and he set off for Hansel’s house.
Upon arriving at his daughter’s home, he saw that Hansel was already opening his presents. Hansel was very happy with what he was given. As he held up his latest gift he declared, “I have the best remote truck on the block. Now, everyone will invite me to their birthday parties!”
“Hansel,” said mother, “Your grandfather is here. He brought you a special gift.”
Hansel left what he was doing and rushed over to his grandfather. He grabbed the wooden box from grandfather’s hands, knelt down and opened it. He took the wooden soldier out of the box, held it up, looked at it for a moment, became angry, and threw it down on the floor.
“Another wooden toy,” he said.
Grandfather came over to Hansel, picked up the toy and knelt down beside him. “Hansel, this is not just another wooden toy. Look – see – it has your eyes and he is a Captain.”
Hansel just looked at his grandfather, nodded, picked up his new truck and stomped out of the room.
Later that night, when the house was very quiet, Hansel tip-toed downstairs to examine his presents once again. He was delighted with his gifts, but when he saw the wooden soldier he once again became angry.
“I am tired of wooden toys! Is this all grandfather knows how to make?” He picked the wooden soldier up from where it lay and threw it across the room causing its arm to break off. Hansel didn’t care at all.
After many minutes of playing with his new toys, he became very sleepy. He crawled up into the big comfy chair across the room from the Christmas tree and fell asleep. Moments later Hansel entered the amazing world of dreams.
In his dream, all his toys became alive. There was delightful music and all the toys were singing and dancing along with the music – even the wooden soldier was happily joining in on the merriment.
Hansel was very happy at what he was seeing until he saw the wooden soldier. Once again he was angry at the sight of the wooden toy. He jumped out of the chair and pushed the soldier down. The soldier did not get up. He just lay there. The other toys were sad at what Hansel did. The music stopped, the singing stopped, and of course so did the dancing.
All was very still, until coming from the hallway was a loud, terribly frightful voice. So fearsome was the voice that one would think it was a fiery monster coming to burn up all in its path. AND along with the sound was a really bad smell like old rotten cheese. All the toys began to melt for fear like ice cubes in boiling water.
“We’ve come for the boy, the selfish boy, the ungrateful boy,” the voice was shouting horribly loud.
Then it happened! Three big, ugly, dirty and very impolite rats entered the room. There was a big fat bossy one, a tall skinny wobbly one and a medium sized one busy filing her finger nails. The bossy one declared:
“You think this is a happy time? Well, it isn’t! We are here for the boy, the very selfish boy! The best thing for all of you to do is to get down on the floor!”