5 mins past midnight...

Jack was walking around in a convenient store, when he saw a Cashier hand this little boy some money back. The boy couldn't have been more than 5 or 6 years old.

The Cashier said, 'I'm sorry, but you don't have enough money to buy this doll.' Then the little boy turned to the old woman next to him: ''Granny, are you sure I don't have enough money?'' The old lady replied: ''You know that you don't have enough money to buy this doll, my dear.'' Then she asked him to stay there for just 5 minutes while she went to look a round. She left quickly.

The little boy was still holding the doll in his hand. Finally, Jack walked toward him and asked him who he wished to give this doll to. 'It's the doll that my sister loved most and wanted so much for Christmas. She was sure that Santa Claus would bring it to her.'

Jack replied to him that maybe Santa Claus would bring it to her after all, and not to worry. But he replied sadly, 'No, Santa Claus can't bring it to her where she is now. I have to give the doll to my mommy so that she can give it to my sister when she goes there.'

His eyes were so sad while saying this. 'My Sister has gone to be with God. Daddy says that Mommy is going to see God very soon too, so I thought that she could take the doll with her to give it to my sister.''

Jack's heart skipped a beat. With Jack stunned, the little boy looked up and continued: 'I told daddy to tell mommy not to go yet. I need her to wait until I come back from the mall.' Then he flashed out a very nice photo of him where he was laughing. Following, he said 'I want mommy to take my picture with her so she won't forget me.' 'I love my mommy and I wish she doesn't have to leave me, but daddy says that she has to go to be with my little sister.'

Then he looked again at the doll with sad eyes, very quietly. Jack quickly reached for his wallet and said to the boy. 'Why don't we check again, you just might have enough money for this lovely doll?'' 'OK' he said with his eyes beaming, 'I hope I do have enough.'

Jack added some of my money to his without him seeing and they started to count it. There was enough for the doll and even some spare money left. The little boy said: 'Thank you God for giving me enough money!' Then he looked at me and added, 'I asked last night before I went to sleep for God to make sure I had enough money to buy this doll, so that mommy could give it to my sister. He heard me!'' 'I also wanted to have enough money to buy a white rose for my mommy, but I didn't dare to ask God for too much. However He gave me enough to buy the doll and a white rose afterall.'' 'My mommy loves white roses to bits.'

A few minutes later, the old lady returned and Jack left with his basket...

Jack finished his shopping in a totally different state from when he started. Jack couldn't get the little boy out of his mind. Then he recalled a local news paper article two days ago, which mentioned a drunk man in a truck, who hit a car occupied by a young woman and a little girl. The little girl died right away, and the mother was left in a critical state. The family had to decide whether to pull the plug on the life-sustaining machine, because the young woman would not be able to recover from the coma. Was this the family of the little boy?

Two days after this encounter with the little boy, Jack read in the news paper that the young woman had passed away. Jack bought a bunch of white roses and went to the funeral home where the body of the young woman was exposed for families and relatives to see and pay their last respect to before her burial. She was there, in her coffin, holding a beautiful white rose in her hand with the photo of the little boy and the doll placed over her chest.

Jack left the place, teary-eyed, feeling that his life had been changed for ever.. The love that the little boy had for his mother and his sister is still, to this day, hard to imagine. And in a fraction of a second, a drunk driver had taken all this away from him... Not for temporal, but forever...