The Little Light on the Christmas House

In a big, beautiful Christmas house at the end of Maple Street, thousands of twinkling lights decorated every window and wrapped around every pine tree in the yard. The house sparkled like a giant snow globe, with lights of red, green, blue, and gold dancing everywhere. Among all those brilliant lights was Flicker, a tiny bulb tucked away in a corner of the roof. While the other lights shone brightly and boldly, Flicker's glow was soft and dim. Most of the time, Flicker felt invisible. "Look how bright we are!" the big red lights would say. "We're the most important!" the green lights would boast. Flicker would just sigh. "I wish I could shine like them," he would whisper to himself. On Christmas Eve, the biggest snowstorm in years began to blow. Wind whipped around the house, and snow fell so thick that you could barely see your hand in front of your face. The lights flickered and swayed, hanging on tight to their branches and roof tiles. Inside the house, the family huddled together, worried about Santa finding his way. "The storm is too strong," Daddy said. "Santa will never see our house!" But outside, something magical was about to happen. As the storm grew worse, one by one, the bright lights began to go out. The big red lights flickered off. The green lights dimmed. Even the golden lights that usually shone the brightest became dark. Except for Flicker. Flicker's soft, steady glow continued to shine. It wasn't bright like the other lights, but it was constant. And in the thick of the snowstorm, constant was exactly what was needed. Far above the clouds, Santa was having trouble navigating. The snowstorm made it impossible to see the ground. But then, he spotted a tiny, consistent light. "There!" Santa called to his reindeer. "That little light will guide us!" Flicker couldn't believe it. His tiny, dim light was guiding Santa's sleigh! He was helping save Christmas! As Santa landed on the roof, he whispered to Flicker, "Sometimes the smallest light can make the biggest difference." The family inside was overjoyed when they heard Santa's sleigh. They didn't know that Flicker, the tiniest, dimmest light, had been their Christmas hero. From that day on, Flicker knew he was special. He might not shine the brightest, but his light was important. And on Christmas, that was all that mattered.