Popcorn Garlands — Ariel Tachna

Carlos Mendez spends all year working hard at his Houston-based landscaping business, and he sends every spare penny he earns back to his family in Mexico. By the time the holidays roll around, he doesn't have much patience for the unadulterated greed and consumerism paraded past him. But a chance meeting with his neighbor, Ned Williams, and Ned's cancer-stricken daughter, might help to remind him of the real meaning of the season -- something beyond the gaudy lights and extravagant displays -- something he wants to be a part of.

A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2016 Advent Calendar "Bah Humbug."