“Merry Christmas, everyone!” I said, hopefully loud enough for them all to hear.
“Merry Christmas, Mom!” my three daughters called in unison.
“Merry Christmas, Bonnie!” the others in the room chorused.
There was a lull in the conversation, then Megan asked, “Do you want us to sing a Christmas song to you?”
“Yes!” I replied with enthusiasm, tears welling.
“Jingle bells, jingle bells…” they all sang, everyone’s eyes on the speaker-phone.
I sat in my house, a thousand miles away from most of my family at Christmastime. I had made my choices, and this was just one of the sacrifices.
