BY HILTON KNIGHT
IN LOVING MEMORY OF BARBARA M. KNIGHT
OPINION —
I have fond memories of my childhood as the ninth of 11 children. The times I cherish most are the times of an older sister allowing me to sit on her lap for hours and reading poetry she loved. I would often take the poetry to her. She immediately knew what I wanted, and she would patiently place me in her lap and for hours read the poetic writings of Whitman, Emerson, Poe, Longfellow and many others. My favorite of all were the writings of Longfellow, the most loved and revered because of his Christian witness and the daily walk he had with his Lord. As a child, I could not have imagined the impact his poetry and life’s story would have on my life and the circumstances I was to face.
It was during the Christmas season of 1997 that I was going through a very crucial time. I, being a greenhouse nurseryman, was asked to grow a $400,000 contract for a department chain. We did a commendable job at growing those pots and flats of plants, but were later devastated by the hottest, driest spring ever. After having to dump hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of plants, we went through bankruptcy, and later, I went through a divorce. I have two sons that I could have called on but did not do so as I did not want to burden them.
I would have probably given up at this time had it not been for being a member of a wonderful church — the First Baptist Church of Opelika. We were blessed to have wonderful teachers and godly deacons. My closest friends were my fellow choir members. My good friend, Doug, a gift from God, was there for me. I called on him many times; he always came through in assisting me. There were also two Christian single ladies who helped me just by talking with me sometimes when I needed someone to talk to. All this was a help and a blessing until I was financially secure again.
In 1997, my daughter left to attend culinary school in Colorado. For some reason this void in my life affected me so that I could not sleep, could not pray. I will never forget that moment. At two in the morning, I finally spoke to the Lord and said, “Lord, I’m sorry I cannot sleep or pray — I am hurting too much.” I was not expecting a response, but the Lord spoke to me and said, “I know you’re hurting, but even in times when Christians are hurting, they need to think of others who are hurting more than they are.”
I knew exactly who the Lord was speaking of. It was the Gullage family in our church. Jim Gullage, a local juvenile judge, and his wife had just recently lost their oldest son. The young man was riding with a friend late one night when they came upon a herd of deer. As the driver made a sharp turn to miss the deer, their son was thrown from the vehicle and lost his life. This was a tragic loss for this family and all who knew their son.
As the Christmas season approached, there were many families in our community who were led to pray for this family — many who felt their pain. I can remember searching through several card shops for a special Christmas card but found nothing. I left for home and later that night, with the help of the Lord, wrote a letter sharing with this family a similar circumstance that had occurred in the life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
“Dear Gullage Family,
It has been impossible going through this Christmas season without thinking of you. I have searched diligently for a Christmas card to send you but could not find anything I thought would be suitable. Instead, I want to share some heartfelt thoughts.
I want to say that all of our church family are thinking of and praying for you, knowing that this may be a very difficult time for you. I also want to share a story with you.
I love good poetry and sometimes write poems that the Spirit of the Lord gives me. I know you have heard of the famous American poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a godly man who lived in the 1800s and wrote many wonderful poems. But there was a time in his life when he was really tested.
One night, as his wife was standing, warming in front of an open fireplace, her flammable dress caught fire; her burns were so severe that after many hours of agonizing pain she died. That was a tremendous loss for this man of God. He went through many moments of grief over the loss of his wife.
He then had to go through another period of agonizing pain when he received word that his son, an officer in the Union Army during the Civil War, had received a wound in his back. The wound was so severe that the medical officers gave him little chance to survive. This news was so crucial and crushing that he lost faith in his country, lost faith in God and in his heart felt that God was dead.
After many days of walking the city streets, not being able to forget the loss of his wife and the potential loss of his son, there came a change in the air in early December: the sound of Christmas bells. He later received good news that his son would survive. With this news, it became apparent to him that in the time of loss and pain, that God would not leave or forsake us if we are His. His torment and pain turned into moments of joy and relief when he got word that his son would survive. It was during this time that the Lord put within his heart and mind a Christmas poem that we love so much, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.”
In April, 1998, I decided to go visit my daughter in Colorado. The trip was interstate all the way, and I had no trouble getting there. It was good seeing my daughter again and enjoying the few days I visited with her.
Before leaving Colorado, I called a friend of mine who was conducting a mining operation over two hundred miles away near Socorro, New Mexico. He asked me to come by and spend a few days with them. I did so, visiting the site and also working with them. The few days not only turned into weeks, but also into months.
I normally sleep late on Saturdays and Sundays and have a late breakfast. On Saturday morning, exactly one year to the day that the Spirit of the Lord spoke to me before, He woke me and said, “Hilton, I want you to go to a gift shop in Socorro to find a gift for the Gullage family.”
I did not have to ask, “How did you know I was here, hundreds of miles away from home?” He knows. I did exactly as He asked, entering the gift shop and walking directly to the Christmas Card area.
You will not believe this, but the second card I picked up had a dark green face. I opened it up and read, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” I was completely overcome by having found this card so soon. Exactly one year earlier in Opelika, I spent over two hours searching for this specific Christmas card and never found it. And here I had it in my hands in two to three minutes after walking in the shop. I was so filled with joy that all I could say for several minutes was, “Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord.”
I paid the cashier for the card and drove back to the motel where I was staying. I secured an envelope and a stamp, addressed the card to the Gullage family, drove to the post office and placed the card in the outgoing mail; I then went and had the most enjoyable breakfast ever. I do not know how to explain my feelings that day, but by saying that I felt blessed beyond measure.
After coming in from work the following Thursday, I checked my mail and found a letter from the Gullage family. The following letter is the exact letter they sent me.
“Dear Hilton,
Thanks for the wonderful card and note this year. The card had the “I Heard the Bells” on the front. That song will be special to us all as long as we live.
We will always remember what you did for us last Christmas. God used you to touch us at a time when we deeply needed it. This Christmas Eve was hard, but we were able to do it without problem and we all thought of you. Thank you more than you will ever know.
We have shared what you did with so many people… Thank you again.
The Gullage Family”
I worked with my friends for another month or so and returned home. In just a few weeks after returning home, I received an invitation to a class reunion. I attended and was reunited with many former classmates. I was also reunited with a sweet, little lady I had known since the fourth grade. She had never been married. I can remember her in the fourth grade and how pretty she was — her dark black hair and a sweet smile. I can also remember how at that age we almost lost her. That was a sad time for all of us — for all the fourth graders. With the prayers of her mother, her dad and many people in the Wetumpka area, she survived.
Just a few years later her mother died, while giving birth to her sixth child. The child also died. With her being the oldest of all her siblings, it just fell on her to enable her dad to help raise the others. She did an admirable part in helping her dad raise them.
It was months after the reunion that I called Barbara and enjoyed our conversation. It was several months later that I called and asked if I could come visit her and possibly take her to a movie. She agreed, so on Friday night — on every Friday night for two years I had the joy of spending time with a very special, little lady. We did not rush into anything, but just enjoyed being together.
But after nine years of single life and seeing her on those weekends, we agreed that it was time that we became one. So on Valentine’s Day, 2005, we became man and wife, a blessing from God.
It did not take me long to see what a blessing she was. I give her excellence in four categories: she was a very good cook, an immaculate housekeeper, a perfect bookkeeper and, most of all, my favorite home doctor. What a blessed recompense after nine years of single life.
At Christmas time, as we exchanged Christmas greetings with our loved ones, the ones that were particularly special to us were the ones from the Gullage family. Barbara always said it best when she said, “The handwritten notes that the Gullages enclosed in the Christmas cards add so much joy to our Christmas.”
We exchanged Christmas greetings with the Gullages every year, and enjoyed doing so. We also enjoyed their handwritten notes. The last one received was in 2018. This time the note was inserted with the sad news that a Mr. Gullage had gone to be with the Lord. We did not receive one in 2019, but received word earlier that Mrs. Gullage had also passed away — gone to be with the Lord, reunited with her husband and the son they lost 20 years earlier.
In the year 2022, I was awakened from my sleep at 2:30 in the morning. Again the Lord spoke to me and said, “Hilton, I want you to share your Christmas story with Walter Albritton.”
He did not have to tell me why — I knew Walter had lost his sweet wife in 2020. I’ve known both of them since grammar school. She was in the same class with one of my older sisters. Walter and two of my older brothers played on a very good football team at Wetumpka High. His wife was a very kind, sweet lady. He also knew of the Gullages losing their son. At the time, he was minister of Trinity Methodist Church in Opelika. He shared that the Gullages were good friends of his. He also shared that the night their son lost his life, he went and prayed with the Gullage family over their loss.
Walter is supposed to be a retired Methodist minister, but he is anything but retired at the age of 93. He is ministering many Sundays. He later sent me a letter sharing his thanks for remembering the loss of his sweet wife.
Now I have some sad news. My little lady, my sweetie, became very sick from a stomach problem she had since childhood. After many weeks of sickness and pain, on Jan. 3, 2025, she went home to be with the Lord.
God only knows the pain and suffering we go through when we lose someone special like her. We are sad, yet at peace, knowing that she is not hurting anymore. She has no pain. She is with the Lord, united with her mother, father, baby sister and many other loved ones. I am sad, because of the loss of her, but happy she is pain-free and with the Lord. She will always be my sweetie, the love of my life.
Now I want you to do something for me. When you hear that special Christmas song, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” please pray for me and my loss, and pray for the Gullage family that are still with us today. That Christmas song and poem meant so much to the Gullages. I know they are at peace and happy in heaven, united with their son and many of their loved ones that had gone before them.
I pray now that these words the Lord has put on my heart will be a blessing to you, for He and His Son will always be our greatest Christmas gift; so may the Lord bless you, and may you have the most merry and joyful Christmas ever.
Sincerely,
Hilton Knight
