Tess was a precocious eight year old when she heard her Mom and Dad
talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was that he was
very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving to an
apartment complex next month because Daddy didn't have
the money for the doctor bills and our house.

Only a very costly surgery could save him now and it
was looking like there was no-one to loan them the money.she heard Daddy say
to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation,"Only a miracle can save
him now."

Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar
from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out on
the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The
total had to be exactly perfect. No chance
here for mistakes.

Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she
slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store
with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.

She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but
he was to busy at this moment. Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing
noise. Nothing.She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound
she could muster. No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and
banged it on the glass counter.

That did it! "And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an
annoyed tone of voice. "I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I
haven't seen in ages," he said without waiting for a reply to his question.

"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in
the same annoyed tone. "He's really, really sick... and I want to buy a
miracle."

"I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist.

"His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing
inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So
how much does a miracle cost?"

"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help
you,"the pharmacist said, softening a little.

"Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it
isn't enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it
costs."

The pharmacist's brother was a well dressed man. He
stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle
does you brother need?"

"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up. "I just know
he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But
my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money.

"How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago.

"One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely
audibly. "And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if
I need to.

"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A
dollar and eleven cents-the exact price of a miracle for little
brothers."

He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he
grasped her mitten and said "Take me to where you live. I want to
see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the kind of
miracle you need."

That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a
surgeon, specializing in nero-surgery. The operation was completed
without charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and
doing well.

Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of
events that had led them to this place.
"That surgery,"her Mom whispered. "was a real miracle.
I wonder how much it would have cost?"

Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a
miracle cost...

one dollar and eleven cents ...... plus the
faith of a little child.

A miracle is not the suspension of natural
law, but the operation of a higher law......

Jaci Rae has been named "The Christmas Expert!" She is also the author of Collista's Search for the True Meaning of Christmas! Congratulations Jaci Rae!