Once upon a time a silver-haired mom knew a hero up close.

For real.

He was loyal and strong and so very courageous.

The mom and hero were very close and had spent years laughing together as the hero had grown.

As the days passed, the hero’s life calling would eventually take him far away at times.  Very far.  So far no one even knew where he was.

Being that the mom loved her hero so much she lovingly would pack a box to send far, far away in hopes that he would know just how much she loved him.

Always praying for her hero, the mom would slowly gather things that she imagined her hero would love and tuck them gently into each box.

Dried fruit, pictures hand drawn by little treasures in awe of the hero, handwritten letters filled with stories of home and always homemade cookies.

One day the mom thought, “I will change this recipe for no-bake cookies.  The hero will think they are extra yummy.”

So the mom put coconut oil in instead of peanut butter, and almond chunks for extra crunch.

The mom had everyone taste them and everyone said, “Yummmm.  They actually taste like an Almond Joy bar.”

So off the box went to a far away place, in hopes it would eventually reach her hero.

Weeks passed.  The mom prayed all day long for her hero.  And yes, she prayed that the things she packed with care would soon reach him and encourage his soul.

Then out-of-the-blue, {as in yesterday} the mom was having an ordinary day and suddenly her cell phone rang.  

It was the craziest number ever contrived.

She gasped.

Hands shaking, she answered the call.

“Is it you?  Is it you?,” she quizzed the caller.

Before the mom could even hear the voice on the other end, she hastily asked,

“Wait!!! Are you okay?”

The familiar hero voice answered, “No, Yes, I’m okay.”

That split second of “No” before the “Yes, I’m okay” made for a split second of panic, but the mom started to laugh, “Don’t say, “No”…I know you were saying, ‘No, I’m okay’…but it made me almost pass out in an instant…”

They both laughed heartily.

Silly silver-haired momma.

In the midst of the moments of listening to her heroes voice, she remembered,

“Hey!  Did you get the first package yet?”

“Yes, I did.  But you know mom we {they open them all together, 
everyone shares – even the letters and pictures – everyone enjoys –
 unselfish heroes, they all are indeed} opened the box and said, 

‘What the heck?’ 

There was stuff all over everything.   Were those no-bake cookies you sent?   
I guess the Tupperware container you put the cookies in broke in
 transit and they were crumbled all over.  
We didn’t even know what it was at first.”

“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry son,” said the mom to her hero.

“It was no big deal.  We just took everything out of the box, 
and put all the crumbs into a bunch of bowls, 
poured milk on it all and ate it like cereal. 
 It was delicious!” 

The silver-haired mom is still smiling.  


She heard her hero’s voice.


He got the package.


The mom and the hero laughed together.


The hero and his hero friends ate the mangled and smashed cookies like cereal.


No doubt, she will smile happily for days and days.