An interesting and enlightening Christmas Story ... Thx so much Pidge F!

*A man named Bob May, depressed and brokenhearted, stared out his
drafty apartment window into the chilling December night.His
4-year-old daughter Barbara sat on his lap quietly sobbing. Bob's
wife, Evelyn, was dying of cancer. Little Barbara couldn't understand
why her mommy could never come home. Barbara looked up into her dad's
eyes and asked, "Why isn't Mommy just like everybody else's Mommy?"
Bob's jaw tightened and his eyes welled with tears. Her question
brought waves of grief, but also of anger. It had been the story of
Bob's life. Life always had to be different for Bob.Small when he was
a kid, Bob was often bullied by other boys. He was too little at the
time to compete in sports. He was often called names he'd rather not
remember. From childhood, Bob was different and never seemed to fit
in. Bob did complete college, married his loving wife and was grateful
to get his job as a copywriter at Montgomery Ward during the Great
Depression. Then he was blessed with his little girl. But it was all
short-lived. Evelyn's bout with cancer stripped them of all their
savings and now Bob and his daughter were forced to live in a two-room
apartment in the Chicagoslums. Evelyn died just days before Christmas
in 1938.Bob struggled to give hope to his child, for whom he couldn't
even afford to buy a Christmas gift. But if he couldn't buy a gift, he
was determined to make one - a storybook! Bob had created an animal

character in his own mind and told the animal's story to little Barbara to give her omfort and hope.
Again and again Bob told the story, embellishing it more with each telling.
Who was the character? What was the story all about? The story Bob May
created was his own autobiography in fable form. The character he
created was a misfit outcast like he was. The name of the character? A
little reindeer named Rudolph, with a big shiny nose. Bob finished the
book just in time to give it to his little girl on Christmas Day. But
the story doesn't end there. The general manager of Montgomery Ward
caught wind of the little storybook and offered Bob May a nominal fee
to purchase the rights to print the book. Wards went on to print
and distribute it to children visiting Santa Claus in their stores.

By 1946 Wards had printed and distributed more than six million copies of
Rudolph. That same year, a major publisher wanted to purchase the
rights from Wards to print an updated version of the book.In an
unprecedented gesture of kindness, the CEO of Wards returned all
rights back to Bob May. The book became a best seller. Many toy and
marketing deals followed and Bob May, now remarried with a growing
family, became wealthy from the story he created to comfort his
grieving daughter. But the story doesn't end there either. Bob's
brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, made a song adaptation to Rudolph.
Though the song was turned down by such popular vocalists as Bing
Crosby and DinahShore , it was recorded by the singing cowboy, Gene
Autry. "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was released in 1949 and
became a phenomenal success, selling more records than any other
Christmas song, with the exception of "White Christmas." The gift of
love that Bob May created for his daughter so long ago kept on
returning back to bless him again and again. And Bob May learned the
lesson, just like his dear friend Rudolph, that being different isn't
so bad. In fact, being different can be a blessing.*


*MERRY CHRISTMAS*

*Enjoy life...   it has an expiration date!*