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This page is dedicated to my nephew, "Thaine".
(He wasn't born yet when I wrote this story.)
Snowlight, Snowbright
by Gary Sundblad - Copyright © 1978 Gary Sundblad
"Snowlight, Snowbright !"
Once upon a time, in a land far, far away,.......
high up in the mountains where people never go, lay a small village,
nestled between giant hills of snow.
The village was very, very old, but so well hidden,
that men living in the valley below did not even know that it was there.
And if they had known it was there, it would not have mattered, for the icy peaks and endlessly deep crevasses would have made travel to the hidden village an impossible task.
Well how then did this village come to be in the first place you ask?
And who could possibly be living there?
Let us look back in time. So far back, that the mountains were only half as tall as they are today.
Now it came to be that two children, two very, very good children, were playing in the snow in a field behind their house.
They were building snowmen. Each child working on his own creation, he endeavored to make his "perfect". They thought it proper that these creations should be husband and wife, and proceeded to name the larger of the two, "Snowbright", and his devoted wife, "Snowlight".
Admiring their excellent work, the two children continued to make more "snow people", none of which quite as large as the first two, but each of which "perfect" in it's own way. The two children continued throughout the day. Despite the foreboding storm clouds which came rolling over the mountain tops, despite the large snowflakes and increasing wind, they built snow people. Despite the nearing night time, and the increasing cold, they built snow people. "I wish they all could come to life and play", said one child with a frosty smile. Now normally such a wish as this would go unnoticed, but this night was different, for this night was "Christmas Eve"...... and we all know that a wish made on "Christmas Eve" is worth a hundred everyday wishes. Well, all of a sudden, the wind started howling down from the mountain like it had never blown before. Pure white snow whirled all around them. The two children started running for home, for they knew their mother and father would be worried about them. Home in their beds, the children lay and listened to the wind howling around the corners of the house.
My, how the wind blew, rattling the shutters, and whistling through the cracks. Despite the wind, the children each thought they could hear the sound of voices. Ever so faint, yet indeed it was the sound of voices.
Happy voices.....singing voices..... outside in the storm. Although the children were very, very excited,
the activities of the day finally caught up with them, and they both drifted off deep, deep, into sleep.
Well it seems the storm faded away with the night time, and with the first rays of the morning sun,
our two children were bouncing out of bed as excited as any boy or girl would be on Christmas morning.
However, rather than running to see their presents waiting under the Christmas tree, these two ran straight to the window, to see how their snow people had survived the storm. To their amazement, they saw nothing but an empty field, covered with whisps of snowdrifts, where their creations once stood. Their parents tried to tell them that their snow people had all been worn away by the winds of the storm.
These two children, however, had some different ideas on the subject. They dashed to their presents, and started celebrating.......
for this was indeed a "Merry Christmas".
Now what really happened during the terrible storm, no one can really say for sure.
But I think it may have happened something like this...........
"The Snow Song"
Snow on the ground........Snow all around.
Snow cold and white, snowed through the night.
Wind on the snow........Snow it did blow.
Round through the night, snow cold and white.
It snowed......It snowed..........
A child all aglow,......Built a man out of snow.
Built a man and his wife, and then wished for them life.
Snowlight........Snowbright.......Snow of the night,
Oh I wish that I may, Oh I wish how we might.........
Play tonight.........Play tonight...........
This wish of a child.......In the snow blowing wild.......
On the Christmas Eve night, was it heard through the white?........
Blowing snow..........Blowing snow...........
Snow on the ground.......Snow all around.
Snow cold and white, snowed through the night.......
That night..........
Yes, the snow whirled and twirled in the increasing winds of the storm. In fact, it blew with such ferocity,
that Snowbright himself finally called out to the other snow people.
"Seek shelter in the hills !", he cried.
With Snowlight by his side, he led his people up into the mountains before the winds could wear away their snowy bodies. Throughout the night they marched up higher and higher into the mountains. Snowlight led them with songs,
to keep the pace moving, and also to brighten the spirits of the smaller snow people. Onward and upward they trudged. Our crystalline creatures finally left the storm to the vallies below,
and stopped to rest near some icy peaks.
"Here is where we shall build our home." Snowbright said with authority.
And so with the first beams of moonlight, they began to build a village of snow and ice, where they could live safely, high above the stormy valley below.
And so it all started way back then.
Hundreds of years passed, and the village grew and prospered. All the snow people were naturally very, very good, because no one had ever taught them how to be otherwise. All the village looked up to Snowbright and Snowlight for protection and teaching throughout the snowy centuries. Everyone was happy working and playing in their winter world. However, there were two small snow children........two very, very good snow children, who had been listening to Snowbright and Snowlight telling tales of a world in the valley, where things were not entirely made of snow. Oh, how they wished they could see this wonderful sight. In fact, one spoke upon spotting a freshly made snowflake falling from above.....
"Snowlight........Snowbright......First flake I see tonight.....
I wish I may....I wish we might.....See the world which is not of white."
Now normally, a wish such as this would go unnoticed, but this night was different........
for this night was "Christmas Eve".
Now to make our story even more interesting, it just so happened that as this wish was being spoken, thousands of miles away, on the other side of the world, lived two more children in a place called "Texas".
Now these two children were named "Heather" and "Sean", and they also were very, very good children.
Now these two had been thinking how nice it would be to have snow for Christmas. And standing out under a Christmas Eve sky, I heard one say,
"Starlight....Starbright.....First star I see tonight.......
I wish I may.....I wish we might.......Have a Christmas snowy white."
Now normally, a wish such as this would go unnoticed, but this night was different...........
Heather and Sean finally had to go in and go to bed and rest up for the big day to follow. Little did they know just "how big" this day really was going to be. It was hard to fall asleep, but the activities of the day finally caught up with them, and they both drifted off into a deep, deep sleep.
Now what happened next I shall not try to explain, but just tell it as I recall.
Heather and Sean awoke very early on Christmas morning, as any child would do awaiting their surprises under the Christmas tree. However, just opening their eyes "this morning", was more of a surprise than anything they might have imagined.
For what did they see?........ everywhere around them?..... but pure white snow.
The walls were all covered with icy snow. The ceiling above them reflected the icy floor below. The chair in the corner sat pure white, supported by it's four icicle legs. Heather and Sean jumped from their beds and ran to the snow framed window, which was glowing with the first sunbeams of a Christmas morning. All around the house lay a village made of snow. From the frosty sidewalks to the sparkling chimneys, all was a pure white fairyland. And what was this?......Coming out of the houses were smiling snow people.....
singing their songs of Christmas cheer.
Turning about, Heather and Sean saw that their cold weather clothes were magically laying at the foot of their beds. "What are we waiting for?" cried Heather. The two quickly bundled up for the cold, and hustled down the snowpacked stairway, turned the snowball handle on the big front door, and ran out to play in the snow.
"My, what a beautiful place !"
Everywhere snow children were running about, laughing and singing. Heather and Sean found some real excitement running and sliding on the sidewalks. At first the snow children seemed a little shy, but soon they asked Heather and Sean to join them in their game of "snow tag". The games continued throughout the day, until finally a large bell was rung in the village square. Everyone headed for the sound of the bell. Heather and Sean followed. They were curious what could be happening next. In the village square sat a huge snowy dining table, covered with a "snowman's feast". Heather and Sean were asked to join them in their Christmas dinner. They graciously accepted this invitation, and were seated as "honored guests" at the head of the table.....right next to "Snowlight" and "Snowbright".
Table prayers were prayed, and the feast began. The first course was a bowl of "ice chunk soup",
shortly followed with a "snowloaf in slush sauce". Heather and Sean thought the food a little "cold" for their liking, but politely continued with the meal. For desert, there was "snow cookies". and "ice cream".
Heather finished her ice water after crunching down one snow cookie. She decided to save the other one for later, and stuffed it in her pocket. It was about now that the snow people started talking about "Christmases past", and all the fun they had had. It was also about now that Heather and Sean started thinking about "their" home back in Texas.....and about their mom and dad who by now were surely worried about them.
"How can we have Christmas without them ?" thought Sean.
"The snow is so beautiful, but not so beautiful as a Christmas with the people you love."
A "crystalline tear" tinkled to the ground from Heather's cheek. Starbright and Starlight immediately noticed this, and asked them why they were so sad.
"We wished it would snow for Christmas.....but realized there's more to Christmas than winter fun and snow." "We've missed Christmas day with all the people who make Christmas what it should be."
"Oh, Snowlight....Snowbright.....First flake I see tonight......
I wish we may...... I wish we might......Return to home, and leave this white."
Snowlight looked at them and replied,
"Christmas present......Christmas past.......The evening sky is coming fast.......
The setting sun it's shadows cast........But the 'Family Christmas' will forever last."
With that, Heather and Sean both blinked their eyes and found themselves lying home in their warm beds.
But what was this? The morning sun was just stepping up above the horizon. They hadn't missed Christmas afterall ! They both jumped out of bed and ran to the window. Not a snowflake to be seen anywhere!
Heather was wondering if she should go check her winter coat for a melting "snow cookie", but decided she had better things to do. The family was all waiting for them around the Christmas tree. Their mother, "Cheryl", spoke to them as they came running into the room. "We were worried you two were going to sleep right through and miss Christmas !" Heather and Sean smiled at each other.
They ran to the tree, and started celebrating......for this was indeed a "Merry Christmas" !
"Christmas past, Christmas now, magically woven together somehow.
The love of a family as they unite, can even make a 'brown Christmas' white."
THE END
In 1978 I wrote this children's Christmas story for my niece and nephew. I included it on a "Christmas tape" I recorded for them that year. I recorded the "Snow Song" as a musical interlude between the two parts of the story.
I was born and raised in Northern Michigan where we were always guaranteed to have snow at Christmas time.
In 1978, the family would be celebrating Christmas at my "sister's home" in Texas. Breaking
from what I had become so accustomed to over the years, that was to be my first "brown Christmas".
That was the inspiration behind the story.
I was once told by someone that they thought this story was a beautiful symbolic "metaphor",
describing the relationship between "Heaven and Earth".
Rereading the story once again from that perspective,
I can't say that they were wrong.
The "Snow" song is Copyright © 1978 Gary Sundblad
If you are looking for more Christmas stories, or Christmas poems,
be sure to check out
www.christmas-stories.com.