“The Christmas Box” was written by Richard Paul Evans in 1994 as a story for his children. Evans circulated some copies of the story to his friends who encouraged him to publish it. When it was published, the little book became a #1 seller on the NY Times list as a hardback and a paperback edition at the same time. It was the first book to achieve that distinction.

“The Christmas Box” is a short story about the author’s family of three and an elderly woman who offers the family the use of part of her very large home in exchange for domestic help in the home. The family and the woman become good friends.

The father discovers an elegant, antique box in the attic. He recognizes it as a Christmas box, a box designed to hold important Christmas treasures that the owner wishes to preserve. He notices some personal letters inside the box but tries his best not to intrude upon the privacy of the box.

The main action of the story takes place during the Christmas season. The woman challenges the father to give his viewpoint about the first and most important present of Christmas. The father has some ideas about how to respond to the question, but he realizes that his ideas are weak and that he seems to be missing something important.

By the end of the story the father has discovered the meaning of the contents of the Christmas box in the attic and the lesson that the woman teaches him about the first present of Christmas. These revelations were the most charming part of the story in my opinion. They gave a focus to some important lessons that need to be learned and relearned periodically throughout our lives. I was glad to have the opportunity to relearn them.

Another aspect of the story that captured my imagination involved the description and meaning of a statue of an angel. It was a very touching part of the story that I will long remember. I have since learned that replicas of the angel statue from “The Christmas Box” have been placed in over 25 cities throughout the nation, and that there are plans for many more.

Obviously, “The Christmas Box” is a story that has touched the lives of many people.

“The Christmas Box” by Richard Paul Evans is published by Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-684-81499-4.