{"id":20382,"date":"2026-03-11T09:16:51","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T09:16:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/uncategorized\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T06:09:56","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T06:09:56","slug":"this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/","title":{"rendered":"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the first Christmas carols I learned by heart was \u201cO Tannenbaum,\u201d a beloved German folk song written in 1819 as a tribute to the enduring beauty of the country\u2019s evergreen fir trees. The original German lyrics made no mention of Christmas, but I was too young to pay much attention to the words back then. What I found more satisfying was the joy I saw in my mother\u2019s face every time I sang the old song. \u201cThat\u2019s your grandfather\u2019s favorite carol<\/a>,\u201d she\u2019d say.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t surprise me that Grandfather Jurgen would like a song celebrating Germany\u2019s towering trees. He was as strong and dependable as any one of them, and deeply proud of his heritage. He\u2019d emigrated from Germany when he was a boy and worked on farms into adulthood. Robust and energetic, he hadn\u2019t been sick a day in his life. He seemed forever unapproachable, especially to the sickly young boy I was. Sports and the like were forbidden to me. Instead, I spent my days in quiet pursuits, reading, singing (my favorite activity) and learning the piano. I was sure Grandfather Jurgen saw me as weak, though it was impossible to tell. He rarely showed any kind of emotion. I simply accepted that I\u2019d never measure up to his expectations.<\/p>\n

The one thing we did have in common was a love for music<\/a>. When we visited my grandparents at their home three hours south of where we lived in Chicago, Grandma would play Chopin and Strauss on the piano while Grandfather looked on approvingly. I didn\u2019t dare play for Grandfather myself and would never have dreamed of singing for him.<\/p>\n

The spring of 1958, I\u2019d just turned 11 and had regained my health. My parents rewarded me by sending me to a month-long boys\u2019 camp in Wisconsin, three hours north of our home in Chicago. It was my first time away on my own, and I was thrilled at the promise of learning to swim, play ball and row on the lake. Camp activities even included music lessons! Two weeks in, I was over the moon. My insecurities were nearly forgotten<\/a>, just in time for Visitors\u2019 Day, when I\u2019d show my mother all that I\u2019d learned. My father would be, as ever, busy with work.<\/p>\n

Outside the main lodge, I watched the families arrive. In the distance, I saw my mother. But who was beside her? Grandma! I couldn\u2019t believe she had come all this way\u2014a six<\/em>-hour journey for her.<\/p>\n

I raced to meet them. \u201cGrandma! Mom!\u201d I yelled gleefully. That\u2019s when I noticed the man walking one step behind them. \u201cGrandfather Jurgen?\u201d I said. The words escaped my mouth in a kind of high-pitched gasp.<\/p>\n

Mom and Grandma gave me warm hugs, while Grandfather stood straight as a soldier beside them. \u201cEvan,\u201d he said, stiffly extending his hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cHello, Grandfather Jurgen.\u201d I took his hand and shook it. Timorously. He frowned.<\/p>\n

\u201cShake firmly, like a man,\u201d he said, squeezing my hand in a vise-like grip.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, Grandfather,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

Grandma rescued me from the handshake. \u201cSo, Evan,\u201d she said, \u201cwon\u2019t you show us around?\u201d<\/p>\n

I escorted them across the campgrounds, then into the main lodge, the cavernous building where most of our indoor activities took place, including meals. \u201cSunday worship too,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is where you pray?\u201d Grandfather asked, his lips pursed. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t look like a place of God.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cBut it can be,\u201d I said. \u201cHonest.\u201d He nodded, somewhat askance. The modern world could be something of a challenge for a traditionalist like Grandfather. I shuddered to think of what he\u2019d say about my friends and me listening to pop music, Elvis in particular. Not that Grandfather Jurgen would have known who Elvis was.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy favorite part of camp is music class,\u201d I announced. I led the group over to the piano, an old brown spinet. The music counselor was valiantly attempting to clean the keys, and I introduced her.<\/p>\n

\u201cYour young man has a really<\/em> good voice,\u201d Mrs. Linden said. \u201cPossibly the best voice in the camp.\u201d I sneaked a look to see Grandfather Jurgen\u2019s reaction, but he stood there stoically.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvan,\u201d Grandma said, \u201cplease sing something for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Grandfather Jurgen raised his eyebrows in apparent expectation. I stood there paralyzed, but inside I shook like a leaf.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can sing anything you like,\u201d Mom said a little anxiously.<\/p>\n

My mind was blank. I couldn\u2019t remember the words to a single song except \u201cHound Dog,\u201d which I knew they\u2019d hate.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have an idea. Do you mind if I play your piano<\/a>?\u201d Grandma asked Mrs. Linden.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy all means,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I\u2019m afraid I\u2019ll have to miss it. I\u2019m needed at the picnic grounds to help serve supper.\u201d I watched as she made her way across the lodge.<\/p>\n

Grandma moved to the spinet\u2019s bench and ran her fingers across the keys as if testing them. \u201cReady, Evan?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

I gulped. \u201cOkay,\u201d I choked out.<\/p>\n

To my astonishment I heard the music to \u201cO Tannenbaum\u201d coming from the piano. Grandma looked to me and winked.<\/p>\n

I closed my eyes and sang: \u201cO, Tannenbaum, O, Tannenbaum, wie treu sind deine Bl\u00e4tter!\u201d<\/em> In English, \u201chow faithfully you blossom.\u201d My voice seemed to echo across the lodge as if carried on angels\u2019 wings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When I finished, Mom and Grandma clapped, loud and long. Then Grandfather Jurgen quietly spoke: \u201cThat was very pretty, Evan. You must sing that again for us at Christmastime.\u201d His lips belied a faint smile, and he patted my back in a very manly kind of way. I extended my hand and shook his. Firmly. Looking him in the eye, I had the feeling we were really seeing one another for the first time.<\/p>\n

Grandfather Jurgen cleared his throat. \u201cYou must be hungry,\u201d he said. I was! \u201cWell, then, we must go to supper.\u201d<\/p>\n

I led the way to the picnic grounds, feeling as tall as the highest fir tree in the forest. As we walked, Grandfather put his arm around my shoulders. \u201cYes,\u201d he said softly, \u201cthat was very pretty, indeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

No later performance of \u201cO Tannenbaum\u201d could ever equal the joy I got from Grandfather\u2019s reaction<\/a> that day. Mom took even more delight in my singing the carol because she knew what Grandfather\u2019s approval meant to me. All these years later, when I sing the words \u201chow faithfully you blossom,\u201d I remember the relationship I felt open up that day at camp. Never showy with affection, Grandfather Jurgen was comforting in his strong presence, like the tall fir trees he loved. \u00ad<\/p>\n

For more angelic stories, subscribe to <\/em>Angels on Earth<\/strong><\/a> magazine.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the first Christmas carols I learned by heart was \u201cO Tannenbaum,\u201d a beloved German folk song written in 1819 as a tribute to the enduring beauty of the country\u2019s evergreen fir trees. The original German lyrics made no mention of Christmas, but I was too young to pay much attention to the words […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":28860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[222,172,136],"tags":[19,34,24,273],"ppma_author":[1281],"class_list":["post-20382","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family","category-friends-and-family","category-positive-living","tag-angels-on-earth","tag-child","tag-christmas","tag-grandfather"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThis Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather - Guideposts Articles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of the first Christmas carols I learned by heart was \u201cO Tannenbaum,\u201d a beloved German folk song written in 1819 as a tribute to the enduring beauty of the country\u2019s evergreen fir trees. The original German lyrics made no mention of Christmas, but I was too young to pay much attention to the words […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Guideposts Articles\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-11T09:16:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-10T06:09:56+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/articles.guideposts.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1540\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"866\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Evan Guilford-Blake\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Neeraj Rai\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be\"},\"headline\":\"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-11T09:16:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-10T06:09:56+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1138,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Angels on Earth\",\"Child\",\"Christmas\",\"Grandfather\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Family\",\"Friends and Family\",\"Positive Living\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/\",\"name\":\"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather - Guideposts Articles\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-11T09:16:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-10T06:09:56+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg\",\"width\":1540,\"height\":866},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Positive Living\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Friends and Family\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/friends-and-family\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"Family\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/positive-living\\\/friends-and-family\\\/family\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":5,\"name\":\"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/\",\"name\":\"Guideposts Articles\",\"description\":\"Strengthening Faith. Providing Hope.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Guideposts Articles\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/gp-logo-white.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/gp-logo-white.svg\",\"caption\":\"Guideposts Articles\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be\",\"name\":\"Neeraj Rai\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=gc7d9b87677b7a32d038be4d79f46df21\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Neeraj Rai\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/author\\\/neeraj\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather - Guideposts Articles","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather","og_description":"One of the first Christmas carols I learned by heart was \u201cO Tannenbaum,\u201d a beloved German folk song written in 1819 as a tribute to the enduring beauty of the country\u2019s evergreen fir trees. The original German lyrics made no mention of Christmas, but I was too young to pay much attention to the words […]","og_url":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/","og_site_name":"Guideposts Articles","article_published_time":"2026-03-11T09:16:51+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-10T06:09:56+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1540,"height":866,"url":"http:\/\/articles.guideposts.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Evan Guilford-Blake","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/"},"author":{"name":"Neeraj Rai","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be"},"headline":"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather","datePublished":"2026-03-11T09:16:51+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-10T06:09:56+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/"},"wordCount":1138,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg","keywords":["Angels on Earth","Child","Christmas","Grandfather"],"articleSection":["Family","Friends and Family","Positive Living"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/","url":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/","name":"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather - Guideposts Articles","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-11T09:16:51+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-10T06:09:56+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/christmas_carol_grandfather_marquee-1.jpg","width":1540,"height":866},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/this-christmas-carol-brought-him-closer-to-his-grandfather\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Positive Living","item":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Friends and Family","item":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/friends-and-family\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Family","item":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/positive-living\/friends-and-family\/family\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"name":"This Christmas Carol Brought Him Closer to His Grandfather"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#website","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/","name":"Guideposts Articles","description":"Strengthening Faith. Providing Hope.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#organization","name":"Guideposts Articles","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/gp-logo-white.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/gp-logo-white.svg","caption":"Guideposts Articles"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be","name":"Neeraj Rai","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=gc7d9b87677b7a32d038be4d79f46df21","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g","caption":"Neeraj Rai"},"url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/author\/neeraj\/"}]}},"authors":[{"term_id":1281,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"evan-guilford-blake","display_name":"Evan Guilford-Blake","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g","0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20382"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20382\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20382"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=20382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}