The Christmas Prayer

Josie McAllister was a fifth grader at Mary Immaculate Elementary School in Small-town, USA. Every day before class started, the children all recited the Angelus and Josie had learned the prayer very well. It was her first year at Mary Immaculate and she was excited to be there. She had made a lot of new friends and she was learning more and more each day about the Catholic faith.

Josie, unlike many of her classmates, had not been baptized Catholic. She hadn't received the Sacrament of Reconciliation yet or her First Holy Communion, but she knew it was just a matter of time before she became Catholic too, like so many of her other classmates.

Christmastime was just around the corner and Josie thought about the gifts she would give family and friends for Christmas. She planned to make Christmas cookies for her classmates and a Christmas ornament for her teacher. For her Dad, she bought a coffee mug because he loved drinking coffee, especially in the morning, and for her Mom, Josie bought a beautiful pair of earrings, that she knew she'd like. They were little Christmas bells made of silver and they shined ever so beautifully when the light shined on them. For her sister and brother, Josie decided she’d get them a candy cane filled with M&M’s, because with just a small allowance, she couldn't afford much.

But Josie remembered there was still one person she wanted to do something special for, and that was her next door neighbor, Mrs. Owens.

Mrs. Owens lived alone and was very rich. She could have anything she wanted for Christmas, Josie thought,and it would be hard to know what to give her as a gift. Sadly though, Mrs. Owens had no family. She had a small group of friends, but no husband or children. Josie heard she was once married, but that her husband died in World War II. Unfortunately, they had no children and Mrs. Owens never remarried.

Josie knew she was going to have to think hard about what she could do for Mrs. Owens. In the short time she lived by her, she had come to like her very much because she treated her so special, like she was her own daughter. She would always invite her in for tea and cookies. She would let her play with her antique dolls and dress them. But best of all, she would tell her stories. Whenever they were together, Mrs. Owens pretended she was a little girl again and they would do all sorts of fun things together. They'd play games, make paper dolls, play the piano and dance to the old time gramophone that sat nearby on Mrs. Owen’s bureau, for just such occasions.

While Josie considered what she would do special for Mrs. Owens, it suddenly occurred to her.

“I know! Josie exclaimed, “I will recite my new prayer to her, the ‘Angelus’, but I'm going to need help. Who can I ask to help me?” she said to herself. “Why! Maybe Mrs. Owens!” she exclaimed. “We can recite it together.”
When Christmas Eve came, Josie was very excited to see Mrs. Owens. She had made a beautiful copy of the prayer for her on blue construction paper and had drawn a small picturesque scene of the Nativity. Beside it, she had glued her copy of the prayer which had been handwritten by her personally.

Josie was so happy, as she walked towards Mrs. Owens house on Christmas Eve with her present. She was so excited to give it to her and when she arrived at Mrs. Owens house, Mrs. Owens greeted her at the door, like she always did in the past, and invited her in. After having cookies and milk, Josie told her she had a present for her and that it was a present they could share. They were use to sharing things and doing things together and it was no different today. Handing the piece of construction paper to her with the Nativity scene on it and the beautiful Angelus prayer, she said, “I just learned this wonderful prayer Mrs. Owens and I thought we could recite it together.”

“Yes indeed, my dear child,” Mrs. Owens replied, “and I have an idea.” At Immaculate Mary Catholic Church, the eighth grade class was acting out a live Nativity scene. Mrs. Owens told Josie about it and they decided to go and see it. Together they walked there and when they arrived, they saw the breathtaking scene before them. It was a spectacular sight to see and as Josie and Mrs. Owens gazed upon the children and some farm animals that were part of the scene, they saw a tiny baby doll, wrapped in a blue blanket, lying inside the manger. Immediately, it reminded them that that was what Christmas was all about.

“This is the perfect place to recite the Angelus, Mrs. Owen!” Josie said excitedly, and as they both gazed at the Nativity scene and the baby Jesus lying in the manger.

And holding each other's hands, they recited the prayer together. Josie was surprised to hear Mrs. Owens recite the ‘Angelus’ so beautifully by heart, and when she asked how she knew the prayer so well, Mrs. Owens replied, “I've been reciting it everyday since I first learned it in school too.”

Josie was so happy! She and Mrs. Owens were the best of friends, and as they walked back home, Josie thought about how special a friendship she and Mrs. Owens shared, and what more treasured a gift could she give her than that, the Gift of Friendship.