PART 1

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After breakfast, which included porridge for the six-month wee Angela, they got ready and left the small apartment. Andrew drove along the road that led to the mountains, his attentive eyes were twice careful as he was carrying the two most precious gifts of his existence in that car.

Despite the cold weather, the road was in good condition and it wasn't snowing yet. Andrew and Monica chatted happily and their little baby's giggles and sounds amused them deeply. Chuckling, the blond angel shook his head and held his laughter when Monica decided to sing to Angela. Fortunately for him the Irish angel was on the back seat next to Angela's chair, and didn't realise how much fun he was having.

"Look, Andrew! She's smiling! I guess she likes it!" the Irish angel exclaimed, enthusiastically.

"Of course she likes it, Monica. Why wouldn't she?"

The angel turned her eyes to the rear view mirror, meeting his green ones. "Well..."

"This little angel loves everything that comes from you, angel! And she's not the only one!" he replied, with a wink at her.

Monica inched forward and bent her head, brushing a kiss on his cheek.

The trip went on uneventfully in its first two hours and around midday Andrew realised that his beloved companion was a bit quieter than usual. Angela had fallen asleep and he soon understood the reason to Monica's silence, as he too felt exactly like her.

"Hungry, angel?"

"I... I confess that I am..." she said, secretly feeling her stomach churn.

Aware of that fact, the blond angel nodded his head and, with a smile, he started to reduce the speed. He stopped at a small restaurant along the road.

The café was simple and there were few people in there at that time. The lady who took care of it was immediately enchanted with Angela's cheerfulness, as the little one woke up right after they entered and much to everybody's surprise, she didn't cry. Much on the contrary: the little baby kept on distributing toothless smiles while her parents ate, and later on she enjoyed the bottle of milk that Monica was offering her.

The happy trio soon called an old lady's attention. She was sitting at the table next to theirs and couldn't help smiling at the tender scene.

"She's a very beautiful and sweet little girl..." she said, with eyes full of admiration.

Monica and Andrew exchanged a pleased glance and then looked at her. "Thank you!" said the Irish angel.

"She took it after her mom!" Andrew added, causing Monica to smile at him.

"You're not from here, are you? I never seen you before..."

"Oh, no, we're not... We're heading to the mountains, we'll spend Christmas there." The blond angel replied.

"Oh, I see. Bet you have some other relatives waiting for you; you're such a beautiful family!"

"Thank you, but well... we'll spend it with a dear friend, Tess. She's like a real mother to us and she always stays with us on special days."

Hearing the Irish angel's reply, the woman nodded her head. "I hope you have a wonderful holiday."

"Thank you. The same to you, madam!" Andrew spoke, and as the woman rose to her feet to leave the restaurant, they noticed she was carrying two bags with groceries. It wasn't such a heavy load for someone younger, but it certainly demanded some effort on a sixty-two woman.

The blond angel was quick to offer help. "I could take those for you..."

"Oh, but I don't mean to interrupt your lunch..." she said, a little embarrassed.

Monica kept the empty bottle inside her bag and stood up, holding little Angela in her arms. "Andrew is right, and we've already finished."

"Well, in that case, thank you so much."

The angels and the old lady paid their bill and left the small café together, and chatting about the weather. Monica had draped a small blanket over Angela's tiny shoulders and the little girl kept on gazing at everything around her with curious wide eyes.

"Is your house far from here? We could give you a ride so that you don't have to carry it." Andrew gently offered, once they were by their car.

"I really don't want to be a bother..."

"Oh, but you're certainly not a bother. Your family must be waiting for you and this way you'll get home faster."

The woman smiled and then nodded her head in agreement. "Well, in that case I'll accept your offer. But no, there isn't anybody waiting for me..." she said, with a slightly bitter tone in her voice.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Monica's smile faded away and the woman placed a gentle hand over her shoulder. "Don't worry, it's alright. My husband passed away a few years ago and my only daughter lives far from me."

"So you do have a family."

"Yes, I do. But we're better off away from each other. It's good for everybody."

They stopped walking right in front of the car and while Andrew placed the bags with her groceries in the trunk she took the passenger's seat. They talked for a while and following her instructions, Andrew managed to get at her house in only a few minutes. It was simple, but cozy, located in a small village by the foot of the mountain. While Andrew took her bags to the kitchen, the old woman showed Monica and Angela her small Christmas tree, adorned with objects that soon enchanted mother and daughter.

"I keep the tradition, even though there's nobody to see it."

"Please, forgive me to ask, Mrs Kelly, but your daughter... how long..."

"Six years."

Andrew returned from the kitchen and placed his hands over his wife's shoulders. "Everything set!"

"I don't know how to thank you both... You've been so kind... a real beautiful family."

"Thank you, but I guess we're not the ones who deserve this... You're entitled to have a beautiful family too, Mrs Kelly..." the Irish angel spoke, and she and Andrew noticed as she lowered her head.

"Too late, I'd say."

The two angels exchanged a look of complicity and Andrew nodded. Smiling, he reached out to take Angela from Monica's arms. "Hey, little one, what about you and I head to the car, huh? Would you like to drive a little?" he spoke, receiving a baby's giggle as a reply. The blond angel took her tiny hand and made her wave at the old lady, who was looking at her with eyes filled with emotion. "Say bye to Mrs Kelly..."

"Oh, sweetie, goodbye... You're a very beautiful little angel!" she said, caressing her pink cheek and not aware of Monica and Andrew's second glance.

He kissed Monica's cheek and left. It was then that the Irish angel reached for the old lady's hand and squeezed it. "Mrs Kelly, whatever it is that happened between you and your daughter, remember that forgiveness is always an option..."

"A terrible argument... And then she left..." a lonely tear rolled down her face as she looked at the small Christmas tree on the corner of the living room. "Every year I build that up hoping that... she... she might come around..."

"Why don't you contact her?"

"I guess I... I'm too proud for that... and too afraid she refuses to talk to me..."

"Mrs Kelly, each day of anger and hate is one day less in a person's life. Each day of love and compassion is one more day in our existence."

The power of the angel's gaze was so intense that the woman felt the presence of tears and the strange sensation that there was something different about the young lady who was holding her hand.

"You... seem to have a sort of... glow around you..." she said, staring back at Monica in disbelief. "I must be imagining things!"

The warm smile upon the angel's face seemed to soothe her troubled heart and, amazingly, it gave even more certainty to the words that followed. "Remember what we are celebrating tonight, Mrs Kelly... There shouldn't be any room for anger."

"Sometimes I wonder if God knows me..."

"Oh, yes, He knows you because He made you. And like an understanding and forgiving Father, He knows how much you want to try again..."

"I do. But... there were so many mistakes... on her part... and on mine too..."

Monica placed a hand over her shoulder, "Everybody makes mistakes, Mrs Kelly. But if you're truly willing to change and start all over again, then open your heart to God's love. There won't be any place for fear then."

"I don't think I deserve it..."

"You're his child. And what parent doesn't think their child deserves a new chance?"

The woman cried openly and Monica offered her a warm embrace. To Mrs Kelly, it was as if God Himself was holding her and speaking to her heart words of encouragement and reassurance through the little angel's small form.

The family of strangers left her house some minutes later and once their car disappeared in the corner, the old lady stared at the phone on the end table.

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