Mrs. Claus tells her side

My dear husband left this morning for his meeting with Eldinil.

He was jolly as always. But I could tell he was concerned.

You can’t hide that from a wife after centuries of marriage!

He has not returned yet. We do not know how the meeting went.

Knowing him, it will turn out for the best in the end. He has a way of making things turn out well.

While he is away, I will take this time to tell a little of my side of the story or how we met.

I read what he wrote. I did not know he saw me getting honey form he bees. He never said anything about that before.

But when I think of it, it helps to explain why he sometimes chuckles when I call him, “Honey.”

I do remember that the time I first saw him in the bakery.

I wish I could say it was love at first sight.

But I was 17.

And he was old. Older than I could even imagine!

Oh, he seemed nice. He had a way of smiling that made one feel warm. And he had a certain twinkle in his eyes.

At 17, I was still trying to decide what to do with my life.

I loved to bake. I could remain with the bakery, working for my father, and eventually, for one or more of my brothers, and still doing what I could to help the other people in the town.

That appealed to me, though there was a part of me that was sad I could not have my own bakery. At that time, women did not usually have their own businesses.

Another possibility was to enter a convent and dedicate my life to prayer and service.

I liked that idea, too. My family was always very religious, and I think my parents would have loved to have one of us children choose a life of service to the Church.

As appealing as that was, though, my strongest desire was to be a wife and mother.

They were certainly a number of fine eligible young men in the town - and some of them were quite handsome - but there was always something missing.

When I looked about the town at the eligible young men, however, I saw no one who stirred my heart and soul.

The only times I felt anything that were when I was praying, or when helping others.

When I first saw my beloved Nicholas, I felt none of those feelings.

I'll tell more about this tomorrow.