And now, friends, to get into the meat of the Think About It Christmas Party. A few years ago, I decided to write a new short story every Christmas as my "Christmas Card." I've grown to quite enjoy this little process and I hope to continue doing it for as long as I can keep coming up with a story every year. Today I'm going to share with you the very first Christmas short story I wrote, back in 2000. Now I should tell you that, whenever I've finished a major project, it's not unusual for a related mini-burst of creative energy to follow, which is why a great deal of my short stories relate to a larger project that I was working on or had just completed at the time. For those of you who have read my first novel, Other People's Heroes, the story you're about to read takes place in that universe, the Christmas before the events in that book. So please click on the banner and enjoy...