The Shepherd Left Behind

Christmas - when we hear that word our minds conjure up memories as intimate as we are individuals. Whether it be a large family gathering with siblings, cousins and friends sharing gifts, food and laughter or it be that season of loneliness after some great loss. We not only remember the time we also feel it. Christmas more that any other season touches our soul. From a young child, we know we celebrate something special on that day. As adults we endure the preparations, recoil at the materialism or perhaps even mock the traditions but underneath all our business and sophistication we wish that we could go back to those Christmas mornings when we felt "God is in His heaven and all is right with the world." These stories rekindle those feelings. This collection of stories remind us once again that Christmas transcends the birthday of Jesus. Perhaps this is one of the reasons God did not record the specific day of Christ's birth. From a baby abandoned in a snow storm to a rebellious teenager forced to sheep sit while his brothers go off to witness a miracle, the compilation deals with the essence of Christmas - love and redemption. Sometimes with the fun of talking animals and children being themselves and at other times with the seriousness of war and death, the author transports us into the lives of people not too different from the reader who learn the true meaning of Christmas.

M H Frye has been a story teller for most of his life. In this, his third collection of short stories, he combines his love of Christmas with his love of people and story telling to entertain and encourage the reader. He combines a divergent background, from planning high-tech fighter aircraft to pastoring and teaching the Bible, to add creditable details to his characters. For many of his adult years finances prevented him from being absorbed in the spending frenzy of the American consumer. During this time he learned many of the great truths he shares through his stories. He says, "Being poor in the wallet cannot deprive anyone of the Christmas Spirit but being poor in the soul will rob everyone of the very essence of the season."