A young Jewish boy, Michael, is given a carved wooden angel at Christmas-time by his African-American friend, an old man in his eighties (based on an actual person—Elijah Pierce, a wood carver, lay minister, barber, and educator from Columbus). Michael is concerned that an angel may not be an appropriate gift for a Jew, but his parents assure him that it is a gift of friendship and that friendship means the same thing in any religion. In return, Michael presents his friend with a menorah he made and, for all eight nights of Chanukah, the menorah glows and sheds light on Elijah’s beautiful carvings.
