12/21/2025
"A true story.
A Christmas Visit from Spirit
My story begins on Christmas Eve. In my family, Christmas was always a big deal — my mother adored it, and so did my grandparents. But that year was different. My grandfather had passed away in June, and this was our first Christmas without him.
I was about seven years old, helping my mom in the kitchen. I had purposely chosen a dress I knew my grandma loved, and wearing it made me think of Grandpa — how he wouldn’t be with us this year. As we worked, my mom noticed I had gone unusually quiet. She asked what was wrong, and I told her how much I missed him and how Christmas just wouldn’t feel the same. She gently reminded me that Grandpa would still be with us, watching over us always.
Later, after I finished drying the dishes, Grandpa still vivid in my thoughts, I walked down the hallway toward the bathroom. Hanging on the wall across from the door was a framed copy of King George VI’s Christmas broadcast from December 25th, 1939. It had been my grandfather’s and once hung in the family home next to where the barn clothes hung. I’d always thought it was fascinating — not only because of its history, but because when you took it down and smelled the back of the frame, it still carried the faint scent of cows.
As I walked past it, the frame suddenly came off the wall and landed right at my feet. I hadn’t touched it; I was on the opposite side of the hallway from where it hung. I shrieked with fright. My mom, who had watched the whole thing happen, burst into laughter. Then she smiled at me and said, “See? I told you Grandpa was here.”
Every Christmas, I think back to that moment. Over the years, I’ve had many other experiences where my grandpa’s spirit seemed to show up — guiding me, comforting me, and reminding me that he’s never truly gone.
Celebrate your loved ones in spirit — they are never far, often visiting us during moments of joy and celebration. Always remembered, never forgotten.
This story is dedicated to my mother, Bonnie Thew, whose gifts as a psychic medium and spiritual teacher have guided me, and to my late grandfather, Clinton Hurlbut, whose spirit continues to walk beside me.
