ADVERTISING
| |
ADVERTISING |
CONTENTS Fiction Juvenile
1st Place
2nd Place
Honorable Mention Adult
1st Place
2nd Place
Honorable Mention Nonfiction 12 and Under
1st Place
2nd Place
Honorable Mention Juvenile
1st Place
2nd Place
Honorable Mention Adult
1st Place
2nd Place LODINEWS LINKS
» Home Page |
Memories of a gold locket Katelin Grant The Epsons had wanted a baby girl since the day of their marriage. But Christy Epson’s dream was shattered after a fight with ovarian cancer, and they never stumbled across a perfect child to adopt. One snowy Colorado night, as the wind whipped and howled against the frosty window panes, the couple sat in front of a crackling fire and dreamed about their little princess. Johnson’s Sewing Inc. has gone bankrupt in the fall, and Abigail Tyler was one of many employees who now found themselves without jobs. After two months of unemployment, she was forced to make the hardest decision of her life. Early on Christmas day, she left her sleeping 3-year-old daughter, Marybeth, on the front porch of a large brick house. After a little kiss on her little girl’s tear-stained forehead, she walked quickly away, head bowed. Ed Epson trudged to the door and sleepily searched for the newspaper. He rubbed his bleary eyes in confusion and starred down at the little pink bundle. Mindlessly stopping to pick it up, he stumbled back inside. “Honey, the paper carrier left us another free sample or something. Dear, can you come look at this?” Swallowed in a fluffy bathrobe and fighting with the curlers in her hair, Christy gulped down coffee as she shuffled into the kitchen. “Oh my God, Ed, that’s a baby!” shrieked the hysterical and incredulous woman. Peering down at the plump, rosy cheeks and tiny, curled hands, she began to sob. Her hands trembling, she opened a gold locket around the child’s neck and saw a woman’s picture. A shred of paper tucked inside her blanket read, “I love you, Marybeth, and I promise someday I’ll return for you, my little angel.” Years later, now living in California, the Epson family traveled to Yosemite for Marybeth’s twelfth birthday. Marybeth sighed in contentment. Her day was perfect. A tear slipped down her cheek, and she opened the little gold locket around her neck. “Almost perfect,” she whispered. “Oh mommy, please, please, please come back...” With lonely eyes, Marybeth starred out the dark window and fingered the worn slip of paper she kept in her pocket. The Epson’s car suddenly died, and the family approached a nearby house for help. A friendly woman answered the door and invited them in for dinner. Sipping hot chocolate and chatting with her guests, the woman suddenly stopped mid-sentence and starred at Marybeth. “I’m sorry, but you remind me so much of my daughter. I left her on a doorstep nine years ago until I could get a job, but when I went back for her the family had moved. I’ve been searching ever since then, but I’ve never found her. I still remember the little gold locket I left with my baby, Marybeth.” The clock struck midnight as Marybeth wordlessly grasped the locket. With tears of joy streaming down their faces, the mother and daughter embraced as a nine-year-old dream was fulfilled on that glorious Christmas morning. Lodinews Home | News | Sports
| Business
Features |
Opinion | Obituaries |
Classifieds | Archives |
PLEASE VISIT OUR ADVERTISERS
» 2-Illuminate |
