Chapter 2
Asa had liked Maddie’s brother from the moment he met him, but, even more than he liked John, he
loved
Sadie. Sadie was John’s black Lab and she reminded Asa of Martha, the Lab he had growing up. Sadie, like Martha, was an old sweetheart with beautiful brown eyes. Whenever he went with Maddie to visit her brother and his family, Sadie would greet Asa with such unabashed abandon that, if she’d been a woman, her behavior would have bordered on embarrassing. After greeting him, Sadie would follow Asa around until he finally sat down, and then she would rest her chin on his thigh and gaze at him adoringly while he stroked her head. Asa would look into her intelligent eyes and see the same unconditional love and profound understanding with which Martha’s eyes had glistened.
John would look at the two of them and say, “Asa, you should just take Sadie home with you. She’s obviously head-over-heels ... I mean, head-over-
paws
... in love with you ...
and
she just mopes around after you leave.”
Asa would laugh and consider the offer, but he knew he could never take Sadie away from John and his family. So, instead, when he left, Asa would take Sadie’s beautiful head in his hands, look in her loving eyes, and promise, “I’ll be back, ol’ girl ... I’ll be back.” Then, he’d kiss her on top of her head. At these moments, the memory of the last time he’d said good-bye to Martha was never far from his mind.
They pulled up to the barn and Sadie was waiting, tail wagging, as if she’d been expecting them. John’s two older sons looked up and smiled and John came out of the barn and waved. As soon as Asa climbed out, Sadie began to wiggle. Asa knelt down and greeted her, “My goodness! It’s good to see you,
too
!” he said softly. She licked his face and hands and turned in happy circles, beating his face with her tail. Then she spied Noah getting out of the truck, too, and bounded over to him, just about knocking him over. It had become obvious to everyone in Maddie’s family that ever since Noah had come to live with Asa, he had become a very close second in Sadie’s book of true loves.
“Hi, Sadie!” Noah said as his face got washed.
Asa stood up and shook John’s hand and the boys came over to shake hands, too. Then John gave his younger sister a hug. When they stepped apart, Maddie looked at her nephews. “Well, don’t tell me you two are getting too old for hugs!” she said. They both grinned shyly and complied. Then Noah gave Mikey and John-John high fives and John a big hug. “Whoa,” John exclaimed, hefting him up. “You are getting heavy! What the heck did you have for breakfast?”
“Just French toast and orange juice,” Noah answered with an innocent grin.
John tousled his hair and turned back to his sister. “So ... you’re not going to Ma’s for Christmas?” Maddie shook her head and tried very hard to not reveal her regret in front of Asa. She had been so thrilled when he’d asked her to go to the Cape that she’d said yes without thinking. Afterward, though, it dawned on her that she’d never been away from home on Christmas ... and, as the youngest of eight, she’d have seven siblings to answer to—not to mention four grandparents, two parents, several aunts and uncles, and thirteen nieces and nephews. The Carlson house was always full of excitement and people—especially on holidays!
Maddie tried to redeem herself by explaining that she’d already delivered all her presents and John smiled. “It’s all right, Maddie. I’m just giving you a hard time.” He looked at his boys. “Right, guys? We’ll manage without Aunt Maddie ... even though we’ll probably have to endure Uncle Jesse playing the Christmas carols.” The boys grimaced and Maddie laughed. She knew all about their brother’s piano skills and it hadn’t occurred to her that he’d be filling in. “I’m sorry,” she said with a half smile. John put his arm around her. “I’m just teasing!” he said. “And I’m sure you’ll have a good time with these two fellas.” Maddie nodded and John kissed her on the head.
“So,” he said, kneeling down in front of Noah, “are you here to pick out a Christmas tree?”
“Yes, sir,” Noah answered, stroking Sadie’s silky head.
“Well, then, you’re going to have to find the hidden field. Only special people know about it.”
Noah’s eyes grew wide. “Is it really hidden?”
“Yup,” John answered. “You have to go all the way to the top of the dirt road and look for an old wooden gate.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a worn key attached to an equally worn key ring with a pewter Christmas tree attached to it. “This key opens the gate.” He smiled. “
But
... the key only works for special people.” Noah nodded solemnly as John handed the key to him. “Don’t lose it!”
“I won’t,” Noah said, clutching it tightly in his fist.
John stood and Maddie and Asa smiled at him.
“Will it be busy today?” Asa asked.
John nodded. “This morning will be ... but it’ll be quiet later.” He looked down the valley and spied two cars already bumping along the dusty road. He turned to the boys. “You two better get up the hill with the saws.”
Mikey and John-John nodded and gathered their tools. As they started to hike up the hill, Asa called, “Would you like a ride?” They grinned and hopped into the bed of Asa’s truck instead.
Asa shook hands with John, thanked him, and wished him a Merry Christmas, and Maddie gave her brother another long hug. “Tell everyone Merry Christmas for me, too!”
“Will do!” he answered. “Merry Christmas to you, too!” He lifted Noah into the back of the truck with the boys and said, “Pick out a good one!” Noah nodded as Mikey and John-John made room between them.
John handed an old bow saw to Maddie. “Just hang the key and saw on the hook in the barn on your way down.” Maddie nodded and climbed into the cab while Asa knelt to say good-bye to Sadie. They all waved to John, turned onto the dirt road, and headed up, passing field after field of Christmas trees. Asa marveled at the variety of sizes, shapes, and types, until Maddie pointed to a clearing with a large grassy area and they pulled in. The boys gave Noah another high five, picked up their tools, and hopped down.
They waved to Asa and Maddie, and Mikey hollered, “Thank you,” while John-John shouted, “Merry Christmas!” Then they trudged up to the staging area where a John Deere tractor was parked and a tree netter was set up near a wooden rack for the saws. Asa and Maddie called out, “Merry Christmas!” and then Asa looked in back to see if Noah was all right by himself. He gave him a questioning thumbs-up or -down, and Noah returned an affirmative thumbs-up and sank a little lower in the bed. They passed several more fields before the road narrowed, heading into the woods.
At the very top, just as John described, was a gnarled wooden gate, almost hidden by briars and fire bush. Noah hopped down, clutching the key, and Maddie climbed out to help him. The old lock was rusty, but, when Noah slid the key in and turned, it clicked open easily.
“
You
must be very special!” Maddie said with a smile. “That old lock never opens on the first try!” Noah grinned and tucked the key carefully back in his pocket and Maddie slipped the chain from around the gate and left it hanging on the post. Noah pushed the gate open and Asa drove through. Then Noah closed the gate and he and Maddie climbed back in the cab. They continued a little farther until the dirt road opened into a rolling meadow with a breathtaking view of the valley. The sky above was a vast, bright canopy of blue. Noah peered out the window and exclaimed, “Wow! You can see forever!” Then he looked across the meadow. “Holy cow! Look at the size of that Christmas tree! It looks like it belongs in Rockefeller Center!” Asa looked in the direction Noah was pointing and there, at the top of the meadow, seeming to overlook the entire world, stood a majestic, towering Norway spruce.
“Wow!” Asa agreed. “That tree must be ninety feet tall!”
“Have you ever asked the Rockefellers if they want it, Maddie?” Noah blurted out innocently.
Maddie laughed. “No, Noah, we haven’t. All our friends ask that same question, but we could never cut it down. It’s too old and beautiful. My great-grandfather planted it when my grandfather was born. There’s a picture in the barn of him holding my grandfather and standing beside it when it was just a sapling.” She paused. “The life span of a Norway spruce is about the same as a human being—eighty to a hundred years—but we’re hoping it lives longer ... it’s still very healthy.” She pointed to another magnificent tree nearby that was at least sixty feet tall. “My grandfather planted that tree when my dad was born. And, after that, my dad started planting trees for each of us! They’re all marked—and not for cutting. But, at the rate our family’s growing, I think all the trees up here will eventually be off-limits!” Noah was very intrigued by the idea of having a tree planted in honor of one’s birth.
“Where’s your tree, Maddie?” he asked.
“I’ll show you,” she said with a smile. Asa turned the truck off and they climbed out. Maddie led them across the field to a group of eight trees, glistening in the morning sunlight, and gently touched the needles of the smallest one. And, although it was smaller than the others, it was still an impressive twenty feet. “This is it!” she announced proudly. There was a marker on the ground, engraved with her name and birth date.
“It’s beautiful,” Noah proclaimed, admiring the grand tree.
“Yes, it is,” Asa agreed.
Noah looked at the marker and exclaimed, “My birthday’s in June, too!”
“I know!” Maddie said, smiling at him. Then she looked at her watch. “Well, enough about family trees ... we’re here to find a Christmas tree!” She pointed down the hill. “And we can pick from any of those.”
“Okay!” Noah called, sprinting down the hill. Maddie and Asa followed.
“How tall are you thinking?” Maddie asked.
“Only six or seven feet ... the ceilings aren’t very high.”
Maddie nodded and they continued to walk, admiring the countless balsams, Frasers, and white firs as they passed.
They had just stopped to take a closer look at a six-foot balsam when Noah called from several rows over. “Dad, Maddie, how ’bout this one?”
They found him standing next to a tall, perfectly shaped blue spruce. “Its needles are kind of prickly, but it’s beautiful!” he offered in his most convincing voice.
“It
is
nice,” Asa agreed, “but I think it’s a little too tall ...”
“Oh,” Noah said, disappointed.
Maddie had wandered down the row a little ways. “What do you guys think of this one?” Noah turned to Maddie. She was standing next to a fat, lush, dark green Douglas fir. “The needles aren’t prickly and it’s nice and full.”
Noah nodded thoughtfully, walking toward her. As he reached out to touch the soft needles, his eye caught something hidden in the branches. He gently lifted the nearest branch and there, tucked safely away from wind and weather, was a small, meticulously woven nest. It even had a piece of the red fabric that was used to tag Christmas trees woven into it. “Look,” he whispered in amazement.
Maddie looked and softly murmured, “Ohh ...” She stepped back so Asa could see, too. Then she said, “My dad always says, ‘If you find a nest in a Christmas tree, you will have a year full of blessings!’ ”
“Well, this is the one, then!” Noah exclaimed happily. “As long as the birds aren’t using it anymore ...”
“I’m sure they’re done using it,” Maddie assured him.
She held the saw out to Asa and he nodded to Noah. “Want to give it a try?”
Noah grinned and, taking the saw, crouched down beside the tree while Asa lifted the lower branches.
Twenty minutes later, after they had all taken a turn with the saw—and after a bit of rearranging in the back of the truck—the Christmas tree was loaded, the gate was locked, and they were bumping back down the road. When they passed the clearing where they’d dropped off the boys, Noah counted thirteen cars. “Looks like they’re busy!” he surmised.
Asa stopped at the barn and Noah reached into his pocket for the key. Maddie said, “Be right back.” She went into the barn hoping to find her brother. She hung up the saw, and found him setting up a cash box. She handed the key to him and asked if he still had any of the little saplings left that people often bought as gifts. He nodded and pointed to a table in the corner. “Any Norway?” she asked, a little disappointed by the selection. John pointed to a scraggly little tree and Maddie laughed. “That looks like a Charlie Brown tree!”
“It’ll grow,” he assured her.
“Okay.” She hesitated. “Oh, and do you have any syrup?”
He took a quart jug off a shelf in back. “Anything else?” he teased. “Would you like my firstborn, too?”
“Sure,” Maddie said with a grin. “I’d love to have Mikey around!” She paused, looking at the tree and syrup. “Actually, do you have something I can put all this in?”
John found a box and put some newspaper around the pot to keep it upright. Maddie closed up the box and gave her brother another hug. “Thank you for everything,” she said softly.