"Christmas In New Hope" - A Tuesday Story Corner Presentation.

Home for Advent.
- By Terrance J. Nelson
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It happened during the pre-dawn hours of December 15, 2001...
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It was an unusually cold December morning, just after the bars closed.  The guy was driving through Bucks County and stopped at a gas station on the edge of New Hope, to ask directions for Old Covered Bridge Road.  The attendant never looked at the guy but gestured towards the general direction he needed to travel.  The man - Helmut was his name - got back into his Aston Martin and started down the road the attendant seemed to indicate. 
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The tree lined road was overgrown with snow laden hedge-rows, while the icy lane zig-zagged through multiple curves and over small rolling inclines.  Undeterred, Helmut began driving faster as he recalled the way... lifting his wrist to his nostrils, deeply inhaling the cologne he had purchased that afternoon:  "Gio!"  Helmut exclaimed.  "I loves dat schmell!"  He shouted lustfully!  "Und so shall my schatzie...."  Suddenly, without warning, the driver swerved to avoid hitting a chicken crossing the road;  the car swung around and around and around like a top on the ice covered surface, crashing into a tree, killing Helmut instantly. 
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The End
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Note:  The center photo in the montage (above) shows Helmut exactly as he was found by rescuers at the scene of the accident.  Though killed instantly and violently in the tragic accident, Helmut appeared almost as if just awakening from a nap - with no visible injuries.  It was considered an Advent miracle.
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Suggested background music: "Leader of the Pack" playing slowly and softly, hoarsely sung by Whitney Houston.