Some links may be affiliate links. We get money if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these links on our site.

Christmas All The Time is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

That’s From The Crossroads Of Africa, Mami

12/22/2025

“Gary.”

He rolled over and rubbed his eyes. “Isidore?”

“As account holder, I wanted to notify you that Abigail is receiving a video call from Matthew Jozsa.”

“Thank you for letting me know. They are engaged now.”

“That is a splendid turn of events. Congratulations.”

Gary yawned. “We all have a lot of hard work in front of us.”

“A concise recognition of the human condition.”

“Yes, but more specifically–”

“The hard work you mentioned. Abby must learn how to be a wife to a young man in the service.”

“And I have to learn how to be an old man, living by himself.”

“Do you?”

“Pretty much.” Gary swung his feet off the bed and stretched his back. “Leave and cleave, as Scripture says.”

“That’s true, but Saint Paul’s first letter to Timothy extols children and grandchildren to repay with love the love you have given. To do so is pleasing to God. Certainly, they will wish to establish a household of their own. That doesn’t mean that they will leave you to wither and fade, Gary. They’re only a call away.”

“Guess we’ll see.” He slid into his slippers. Rubbing his eyes, he wandered out to the living room.

“Good morning, Gary. Are you feeling okay?” Matt asked from the TV.

“Hi, Matt. Enjoying my vacation and glad not to be trudging around in hip-deep snow. How’s your arm?”

“Ha ha, it’s there, sir. We’ll see how it looks in January.”

He turned to Abby. “Want me to take Teddy out for some breakfast?”

“Teddy! Grandpa’s going to make you some eggs. Want some eggs?”

He whacked the spinner on his exersaucer and laughed as Gary pulled him free.

“Come along, handsome. Mom and Dad have some catching up to do.” Gary pulled the kitchen door behind him. “Well, mister, let’s have some eggs.”

Teddy sat in his highchair watching Gary.

“We’ll make them nice and fluffy. How does that sound?”

Teddy opened and closed his mouth in anticipation of breakfast.

“Hungry? A little bit of salt and pepper for taste and we’re all ready.” Gary brought over a serving bowl full of scrambled eggs and scooped them onto his plate. He sectioned a portion off and slid it onto the tray of his highchair. “Really? Straight into your eyes?” Gary wiped the baby’s face.

Teddy grabbed a handful and jammed them into his mouth. His little lips pursed as he chewed.

“You’re a good eater.” Gary saluted him with a forkful of eggs. “I’m going to miss you.”

Teddy grabbed another handful and mushed it into his mouth. He looked over Gary’s shoulder and held up his egg-smeared little hands. Gary turned to find Abby standing in the doorway with her arms crossed. The pretty little cross-shaped ring glistened in the morning light.

“Dad, we’re not going anywhere.”

“Done already?” He scooped up some more eggs for Teddy’s tray. “I would have thought you guys had a lot to talk about.”

“Probably, but he had people coming over. It’s not snowing as hard in Laurel Ridge, so his grandparents and some other relatives are stopping by. We’re not going to leave you alone, Dad.”

“Eventually, you’ll get your own place. You might have to join him somewhere abroad.”

“Eventually, maybe. You know we can do video calls anytime, even if we’re on base somewhere. We’re not leaving you alone, Dad. We’re going to deal with this.”

“When’s the wedding?”

“Not now. For one thing, I want him in his dress blues. Did you see him in that video Christmas card? I don’t care if it’s the day after he gets his cast off or if it’s springtime when the trees have blossomed, he’s going to wear that gorgeous uniform, and he’s going to have two functioning arms to dance with me. Okay?”

“Mátyás, look at the size of you. You’re eating well in Africa.” Matt’s grandmother had him wrapped in her arms. “Of course, you are. Say hello to your Papi.”

“You have to let go, Mami.” He laughed and hugged her back. “Let me see this guy.”

“I’m pleased to see you in one piece, Máté. Your poor arm. Does it hurt much?”

“I hardly notice it, Papi.” He hugged his grandfather. “Thank you for coming.”

“Your aunt said she was coming whether we did or not. I’m going to pass up a free ride in her crazy robot car?” He patted Matt on his good shoulder. “So, you’re getting a lot of good sun. You look, um, radiant. Yes, radiant.”

“Papi, it’s not the desert sun. It’s my gorgeous son and my beautiful fiancée that have me beaming.”

His grandmother turned sharply. “Gorgeous son?”

His grandfather took a step back. “Beautiful fiancée?”

They looked at each other. “What?” They looked at him.

“There’s a lot to talk about.” Matt chuckled. “Let’s have hugs and I’ll explain everything. Where’s Aunt Christina?”

“Look at you, you giant lummox. Give your aunt a hug, darling.” She pushed through the crowded living room to hug him.

“I’ve missed you. What’s this about a robot car?”

She smiled. “I had Isidore giving me traffic updates on the console, and the car has that self-parking thing.”

“Ha ha, I can see it. Let’s have a seat, and I’ll tell everyone about what happened yesterday.”

Jenny found everyone a seat while Matt remained center stage, one-thumb typing on his phone. There was a knock at the door.

“I’ll get it.” Gabe said. He clapped Matt’s back on his way past. He peeked out the window to find the postman with a box. “Oh, it’s Dave. He’s got a box.”

He opened the door and signed for the box. “Matt, it’s from you, from Africa.”

“Great! I was hoping it would get here before Christmas.” Matt smiled. “Mom, can we have a TV tray?”

“Card table, I think.” Gabe brought the box over to show everyone. “Can you believe this? A big box from Djibouti.”

Jenny brought out the card table and set it up. “Look at that. What is it, Matty?”

“This is what I got from that sheikh I told you about.” He grinned with anticipation. “I’m glad you’re here to get them.” He watched his dad cut through the sealing tape. “Mami and Papi, this is for you.” He pulled out a little treasure chest and handed it to his grandfather. “Aunt Christina, this one’s yours. Here’s one for Mom and Dad. Bonnie, here’s one for you and Ned. Okay, everybody, open them.”

They opened their boxes. His grandmother ran the pale yellow nugget under her nose and handed it to Papi Gyurka as she picked up a darker piece and smelled it. “Frankincense and Myrrh?” She studied the little gold crown trinket. “And Gold!”

“That’s from the crossroads of Africa, Mami. The Wise Men would have gotten theirs from where I’m stationed.”

She read the little handwritten card inside the chest. “Mátyás, you weren’t expecting to be here to give this to us. This is lovely, but it wouldn’t have been the same without being able to give you a kiss for it. Come here, boy.”

He knelt so she could kiss both his cheeks and his forehead.

“This is the real deal?” Aunt Christina studied the contents of her treasure chest.

“Yes, ma’am. Omani frankincense, Somali myrrh and Saudi gold courtesy of Sheikh Ibrahim ibn Tāriq al-Dhāhirī al-Djībūtī.”

His grandfather laughed. “That’s a real mouthful.”

“Thank you, Matty. This is lovely.” His aunt said.

Bonnie studied her treasure chest as she rubbed her belly. “That’s so thoughtful, Matt. I’m glad you were here to give it to us.”

“Next present.” Matt smiled as they looked up at him. “Isidore, please connect us with Abby Light.”

Abby, Teddy and Gary appeared on the TV. “Hi!”

“Papi, Mami, Aunt Christina, my fiancée, Abby, my son, Teddy, and my future father-in-law, Gary. Guys, my grandfather and aunt.”

“He looks just like you, Matty!” Aunt Christina said. “Oh, how adorable is he?”

“Máté, how do you have a son?” Papi Gyurka asked.

Matt shrugged. “God likes to surprise me. Show them your ring.”

Abby held her hand up to the screen.

Mami Márta nodded. “Jézus Szent Szíve, that is beautiful. Did Father Daniel see this?”

“He saw it and blessed it. So did their priest, Father Tom.”

“Good morning.” Gary said. “Looking forward to meeting you in person.”

“Hello, Gary. Nice to meet you. I’m George. How does Máté have this son? Can anyone tell me?”

“Papi, we’ll talk about it.” Matt said, his blood running cold. “Isn’t he beautiful?”

“Yes, yes, he looks exactly like you. Clearly, he is yours. How is this?”

“Gyurka, please.” Mami said.

Papi waved his hands. “We’re not brushing this under the rug.”

Matt turned to the TV. “We’ll call you back later.” The call ended.

“When did you put that ring on her?”

“Yesterday, Papi.”

“And when do you marry?”

“We haven’t gotten that far.”

“Tomorrow’s fine.”

Gabe laughed. “Dad, we can’t put a wedding together by tomorrow.”

“I guess it depends on if we get more snow. Call Father Daniel and get this done. That’s all the wedding that’s needed.”

“Yeah, not sure that’s right.” Bonnie said. “She deserves a nice wedding with Matt in his fancy uniform.”

“Oh, she deserves? She brings an illegitimate child into this world and springs him on you when you come home with your arm broken, but she deserves a fancy church wedding with all the frills? She’s lucky your brother is the man he is. You marry her. You bring that boy out of the shadows and you don’t make a big fuss about it.”

“Nobody cares about that these days, Dad.” Aunt Christina said. “Don’t be like that.”

“He’s not in the shadows.” Matt scowled.

“You want to wallow in shame? Fine. I don’t understand this generation.”

“What just happened?” Abby stared at the blank screen.

Gary bounced Teddy on his knee. “I think civil war just broke out at Matt’s house.”

“What’s going to happen? Is he going to veto the wedding? Can he do that?”

“I don’t think so, hon. Back in his day, there’d be a shotgun wedding and a lot of shame to deal with. It will take some time for it to sink in, but even George will figure out that Teddy is a blessing rather than a problem to be managed.” He smiled at his grandson.

“Were you ashamed of me?”

“Abby, when you told me…”

“Dad, why?” She took Teddy and hugged him close. “Why would you be ashamed of me? I didn’t mean to–”

“I know. My reaction was my problem. I couldn’t see how you were just looking for reassurance. I had the same concerns as George. I was just thinking how it reflected on me, how it would affect my status at church. It was all about me until I realized that it isn’t.”

“I was scared.”

“I’m sorry. I was just reacting. It wasn’t shame or anger, Abby. It was panic.”

“I was scared, Dad. You shut me out for months. I felt so alone.”

“So was I.” He hung his head. “I was afraid I was going to lose you like I lost your mom. I was already mourning you when I should have been supporting you.”

She kissed Teddy and looked at her dad, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry.”

She shook her head and hurried to her bedroom.

‘Dad, I need to tell you something.’ He stared at the blank screen. ‘Oh, do I know who’s responsible?’ He had been seeing red, not Abby. ‘No. You don’t know him yet.’

Gary slid off the couch and gathered Teddy’s toys into the basket. ‘So, when is that going to happen?’ He stood up. ‘I don’t know. He’s away, and I don’t know when he’ll be back.’

He wandered out to the kitchen. ‘So, he skipped out. That’s just fantastic. Will he be back before…’ He opened the fridge. ‘Before the baby is born? That’s what this is, Dad. I have a baby. I’m going to have a healthy, sweet baby sometime in March whether you like it or not.’ He pulled out the milk and the eggnog.

“I’m sorry, Abby. I was just scared. Don’t hate me.”