A Black Family Christmas: Revised Edition

By Kasaunta Poe

All of the characters in this book are fictitious. Any similarities to these characters or events are purely coincidental.
While reading, you will visualize the scenes for each chapter. You will experience the love, memories, sadness and tragedies one may encounter during the holiday season. This story will put you in the spirit; bring back memories and the true meaning of Christmas.
Enjoy!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 13, 2010
• ISBN: 9781465318862

Kasaunta Poe

I was born in Ouachita Parish. Lived in Port Arthur, TX and later on in my adolescent years my parents moved to Houston, TX until I was in the first grade. Then my mother and father separated and later divorced. My mother, brother and I moved to Winnsboro, LA where I lived until I graduated high school. I have two children Erica Stagg and Ambrose Stagg. At the age of thirty-six I got married,and became a mother figure to his three children,making it a total of five children Lona, Andre, and LaToya. We have three grandchildren CJ, Amaya, and Tyrees.

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Copyright © 2010 by Kasaunta Poe.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

This book was printed in the United States of America.

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Contents

DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you Lord! It is all about you Lord! Thank you Lord for this blessing. This is a magnificent gift.

God blessed everyone with a gift. Whether it is singing, painting, or becoming a published author. It is up to us to utilize that gift.

Matthew 2:7-11

⁷Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. ⁸And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. ⁹When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. ¹⁰When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. "And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh.

This book written to reintroduce the generation of baby boomers and generation X the true meaning of Christmas. People have tried to replace what is supposed to be a celebratory day of Christ’s birth with a time of gift giving and commercialism. The letter ‘X’ has replaced the word Christ in Christmas. The politically correct spelling is now X-mas; trying not to offend anyone. Some have instilled in their children that this is what Christmas is. Many use poor monetary judgment by spending all of their life savings, opening loans, and maxing out their credit cards buying gifts.

In this book, my desire is to show how my family and I grew up knowing that Christmas was all about the birth of Jesus Christ. Every Christmas morning our family would read scriptures from the bible (Matthew 1: 1-25 & 2:1-23). After we finished reading the bible, it would be time for family prayer. As we prayed, we would never forget to pray for those less fortunate. The bible says you should always pray for others, we prayed that others would somehow have a good Christmas in spite of their circumstances, whatever they were.

After acknowledging Christ, the adults would bless the food and we would all sit down and have an appetizing Christmas dinner prepared by the senior members of the family. Once dinner was over, the older children would clean the kitchen and put away the food while the other younger children played, laughed, and just had fun. The adults meanwhile would be in the living room laughing and talking, and reminiscing about only God knows what. Throughout the day there were people visiting who were friends of my grandparents, their cousins, aunts, and uncles or just people from the neighborhood.

I am not attempting to be judgmental because there were several times I bought all the things my children wanted that I could afford to buy. In the midst of it all I still never forgot what Christmas meant. I became somewhat caught up in the commercialism, after all these were ‘my’ kids and I refused to let ‘my’ children be deprived of the gifts they wanted.

I had to remind myself that Jesus is the real reason we celebrate Christmas. We should not get so bogged down in the season that we forget to explain to our children why we are celebrate Christmas. You would not want anyone to forget your birthday would you. After all, this is the day that YOU were born.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

To the Stagg and Boley, family who encourages me. Andrea Smith-Waller and Patricia Johnson Books and Beignet book club-Monroe, LA.

Last but most definitely not lease my sister in Christ Pat G’Orge-Walker. Thank you for your encouraging words and prayers.

Chapter 1

Mary! Are you awake? It is time for you to get up. We need to go shopping. But first we need to clean the house, said Bertha. Oh! Good morning mom. How do you feel today, asked Mary? Well baby I feel o.k. I think I could have slept a few hours more though. First, thing we need to clean the house. I want to go to the mall today. Breakfast is ready. You should eat it before it gets cold, said Bertha.

Bertha set the table with grits, eggs, toast, bacon, and orange juice. Once they finished eating, Mary and Bertha cleaned the house. While they ate, the phone rang. Hello, said Bertha. How are you today Bertha? said Mrs. Harris. Fine, she said as she listened to Mrs. Harris. O.K. Thank you, said Bertha. As she hung up the phone, tears rolled down her face. What’s wrong mother, asked Mary. Well I’ve received some disappointing news. My patient Mrs. Cotton has died. Now I will be without a job. At this time, they are not sure when they will be getting another patient. It could be the beginning of a long winter without a job. Besides, it will give me a chance to sew. I haven’t sown in a long time, said Bertha. Well, are we still going shopping, asked Mary? Yes! Mary do not worry about a thing. God has this steering wheel. This is no matter for you to worry about. We will continue to carry on just as if nothing has happened. She knew that God would provide for them. However, in the mean time, she also knew that it would be a while before another sitting job became available. She knew that she had to be positive.

Bertha took Mary to the mall as she promised, even though she knew that she should be saving the money they spent. Mother, how about we just stay here and enjoy doing something here. We don’t have to go anywhere, said Mary. Well perhaps you’re right. Nevertheless, I promised you a day in the mall. Instead of just going wild, we could buy a few things and maybe eat lunch. Plus, sitting around here would have us worrying about something we don’t have any control over, said Bertha. Mary was so happy. She smiled all the way to the mall. Bertha was happy that she and Mary did go to the mall. She would do anything she could to make her child happy. Sometimes it was harder than usual to keep her happy. However, Mary always thought of her mother more than she always thought of herself. She never liked seeing her mother unhappy.

They walked throughout the mall. Mother, how do you like this sweater? That is a pretty sweater. It has all my favorite colors, said Bertha. Momma what about this blouse. Do you like this? What are you doing? Are you trying to see if I liked what you pick up so that you will know what type of gift to buy me? Baby, do not spend your allowance on me. You should be buying you something special. You need to buy Sharon a gift for your school party, said Bertha. Oh yea. I forgot about that. She wants a coin purse. What about this one? It has pretty beads, said Mary. That is pretty, said Bertha. After going to all of the stores, Bertha decided that they should get some lunch. What do you want to eat, she asked. Mom, how about we eat a home cooked meal so you won’t have to cook supper. That would be fine, said Bertha. As they walked into Marjorie’s, they filled their plates with greens, chopped steak, cream potatoes, gravy, cornbread, sweet tea, and chocolate cake. Boy, I think we both have sinned. I am so full I feel like I am about to burst," said Bertha. After Bertha and Mary finished eating, they walked around the mall and window-shopped. They walked out of the mall and waited for the bus to arrive. They had spent most of the day in the mall laughing and having fun.

They finally arrived home. Mary, put the bags in the hall closet. We will deal with that tomorrow. O.K. I think I will take my bath first. I am tired, said Mary. Yea so am I, said Bertha as she yawned. Mary ran off to take her bath. Soon, she was finished and dressed for bed. Good night momma. I love you. "Good night, baby. I love you too, said Bertha, as she went into the bathroom to take her shower.

Good morning mother. How are you feeling today, asked Mary smiling. I feel O.K., said Bertha with a smile. I fixed you breakfast. I also made coffee, said Mary. What time is it, asked Bertha with a curious look on her face. It’s about 8:30, shouted Mary from the kitchen. 8:30, Girl, don’t you know we have Sunday Service today? We need to hurry or we will be late. I do not want Deacon Jones waiting on us to finish dressing. Mary I can’t believe that you didn’t wake me, said Bertha as she hurried to eat breakfast. Mary went to her room to get dressed for church. She wore her navy blue and green plaid skirt with a white blouse, navy knee length socks, and navy shoes. Her hair was worn with a ponytail with a plaid ribbon. Bertha was dressed in a soft pink suit with a white blouse with ruffles. Mother you look pretty. Thank you! You look beautiful yourself, said Bertha. Mom I’m sorry that I didn’t wake you earlier. You looked as though you were sleeping so peaceful. Well, that’s all right baby. I guess I over reacted. Thank you for my breakfast. It was delicious. Well are you ready? Deacon Jones will be here in a few minutes. We need to be ready when he arrives, said Bertha.

Bertha kept going repeatedly in her mind the sermon Pastor Jackson gave today. He was quoting scriptures from the Bible and saying in a strong voice Look to the heavens. God will provide for you. Don’t you worry! Pray! Pray! Pray to God. God will never let you down. God will never leave you or forsake you, said Pastor Jackson. He was one of those strong voiced Southern Baptist ministers. Sometimes when he preached, his sermons he would scare you. When you left church you remembered everything he said. He made you feel like you had been to church. That was a good sermon today, Deacon Jones. I felt like he was talking to me, said Bertha. Yes he preached a good sermon. Why did you feel like he was talking to you if you don’t mind me asking, said Deacon Jones? Well, my patient died and, I am without a job for now. Why didn’t you say something? The church would have given you something to help you and Mary out, said Deacon Jones. Well, I don’t want to act like I am too proud to beg. Mary and I are doing fine for now, said Bertha. Sister Bertha, if you need anything, please don’t hesitate, come to the church, and ask for help because we are all family. Thank you Deacon Jones. We will see you next Sunday," said Bertha, as she and Mary walked into the house.

Look like we will have to eat a snack until that chicken thaw out. We could make a sandwich. You need to go in there and change your clothes, said Bertha. Momma, it will be Christmas soon. What are we going to do, asked Mary? Well Mary, we will do exactly what the sermon says. We will look unto the heavens. God will provide when the time is right. We will not worry. Bertha went into her room and changed clothes. Once she changed her clothes, she went into the kitchen and made sandwiches for them to eat.

After they finished eating, they went into the living room. Mother will it be alright for me to put the Christmas tree up, asked Mary. Yes! I think lights will brighten up this cold, dark, wintry room, said Bertha. Momma sometime the blinking lights make you think. Sometimes just watching the lights brings tears to my eyes, said Mary. Yes Mary sometimes Christmas brings sadness to some peoples eyes. Some are less fortunate to bring joy to there families. They cannot deal with the pressures of the world. Some try hard to provide for their families. Can you imagine what Christmas morning would be like if you did not buy your children toys, food, or clothes? Sometimes the holidays bring back memories of a family member who has passed. Families that consist of a husband and wife that is minus a father or mother due to separation, divorce, or even death. The child suffers because he or she has to spend the holidays with one or the other. Many things could bring tears to your eyes during the holidays. There is also the situation with Mary and Joseph when he was looking for a place to have her baby. There was no room in the Inn. No one would give them a comfortable place to birth the baby Jesus, or even a place to sleep. There was one person who said that the only place he had available was a stable. Jesus was born in a stable around cows, goats, and sheep. A King. Therefore, this tells you that you do not have to have a royal palace. Nor do you have to have the luxury and glamour to have joy, said Bertha. Mom, it is sad all of the things that happen to people during the holidays. Why do you hear more about these things during the holidays? Well, Mary these things happen everyday. You just hear more about it doing the holidays. I do not know why it is more of a big deal than everyday. Some are exploited as families missing a loved one, no food, utilities, clothes, or shoes. The media makes a big issue out of these situations only during the holidays when this is an everyday problem. I cannot understand this one thing. Why don’t they acknowledge this problem everyday? During the Christmas season, they put these people on TV and in the newspapers as if they have just discovered something new. Less fortunate people are not a new issue. If these same less fortunate citizens went to those same people that put them in the spotlight and asked for a helping hand, they would realize these people probably would not give them a second look. It is like a competition of who can give the most money to the under privileged, or the biggest tax right off. They take advantage of these peoples disadvantages. Once Christmas is over, their problems are not over. They still cannot pay their bills, buy special gifts for their children, or buy food. The mom or dad has to smile in front of their children even when they do not feel like smiling. Many children find themselves stealing to feed their hunger pains, or to keep up with the trend. Yea, it is joy for a moment. Where are some people that spoil them for a moment? Where are these people when they have to worry about their daily problems? These people continue to live. They do not die. Nor do their problems. You just don’t tease these people, said Bertha. Mother that is really bad. I think that they should not show these people off like trophies. Nor do you take care of the situation for a moment just to make yourself look good, said Mary. "Yea, that’s why I said everyone has lost the real meaning of

Christmas. Some families teach their children that Christmas is about toys, or lead them to believe that this is the true meaning of Christmas. Some have gone to the extreme of placing an X at the beginning of Christmas, x-ing out the name Christ. Values mean a lot. Everyone should always teach and acknowledge values, said Bertha. Mom I could sit and listen to you all night. Especially when you talk about the times when you were growing up, said Mary. Mary and Bertha worked together decorating the tree. She left Mary in the living room decorating the tree, and went into the kitchen to cook their supper. Dinner is ready, said Bertha. Hum, mom dinner looks good, said Mary. The tablecloth was white with green plates, green napkins, and sterling silver napkin holders. She had prepared fried chicken, peas, potato salad, and a butter cream cake. What’s the occasion? Momma the table looks beautiful. Are we having company? No baby. Just thought we could use some cheering up. Now let’s say grace."

**** "Dear Lord, thank you for this food that we are about to eat. Thank you Lord for this food to nourish our body.

Thank you Lord for our many blessings. Lord please bless those who have and those who don’t have. Amen." ****

Mom, dinner was delicious, said Mary as she cleaned the kitchen. Thank you dear. The Christmas tree looks beautiful. You need to add some more icicles. Maybe some more ornaments, said Bertha. She sat in the dark glancing at the tree, Christmas lights reflecting on her face. "Sometimes just sitting here and looking at the Christmas tree makes you forget about your problems. It makes you think how blessed you really are. Sometimes if the world would not make such a big issue out of Christmas other than what it really means, Christmas wouldn’t be so depressing. Everyone has lost the meaning of Christmas long ago. Mary, when I was a child we really understood the meaning of Christmas. First, we all prayed a prayer. Then daddy or momma would read the birth of Jesus Christ. After breakfast momma would let us open our gifts. Daddy and Momma bought us each a pair of gloves, mittens, socks, or earmuffs. Most of the time, all we got was an orange, apple, and walnuts. My momma would sew all of us something to wear to church. When