Original subtitles

Downloaded from YTS.MX

[gentle music]

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- [Millie] In December of 1942,

the snow fell early and deep in our town.

The drifts banked so high, we could slide

right out our 2nd story windows

into soft powdery bliss.

Every chance we got, we children flopped

into an untouched spot to make snow angels.

Angelic signatures, dad called them.

We had signed heaven's name all over our little town.

My 11 year old heart was lit up

with the magical feeling that all Christmas dreams

were sure to come true.

[birds chirping]

Then just a week before Christmas,

an unexpected announcement came

at the end of dance class.

- Attention, girls.

Since we won't be together again

until after the Christmas break,

I have an announcement.

Miss Millie, will you please step forward?

You don't have to be so terrified, dear.

- [Millie] I couldn't imagine

what she had called me out for.

Mistress Allen never complimented her dancers.

I braced myself for a public rebuke.

- I want the entire class to know

that you, Miss Millie, are ready

to dance on pointe.

- [Millie] My long awaited dream

of pink silky pointe shoes

came with a brand jete into my mind.

- Of course, it's nearly impossible

to get into pointe shoes

what with the war shortages.

But, if by some miracle

you were able to get into some by the new year,

you will be most certainly ready

to dance the Nutcracker by next Christmas.

- Nutcracker.

Mama, you'll never guess.

Mama.

- Mom, dad, Millie, Grace, Will.

- I did one more painting.

Please help me hang it, Millie.

- I don't know where we can.

You filled every bit of wall space.

- There.

- Alright, how 'bout this?

There.

Beautiful.

- I'm out of paint.

- Now you know what to ask for your Christmas wish.

Where's mom?

- Planning.

- [Dennis] Dan, we don't have a spare nickel

for gifts this year.

- No money for Christmas?

Dennis, what about the children?

The children have gone without so much,

you working nonstop at the factory

and when you're home,

you're always getting called away

to help another neighbor with this or that

and now with their grandfather serving overseas...

- I know, I know,

it's the same in every small town.

- [Millie] A heavy feeling came into my heart,

sadness, hurt and anger all mixed together.

It sent a cold shiver right to my bones.

The pointe shoe vision began to fade.

I wanted to pretend I hadn't heard

or throw something or both.

- Okay, my little pirate, for you

have you eaten anything yet?

Take three bites.

- [Millie] The secret worried me through dinner.

Mom and dad went on like everything was normal

questioning us about school and friends.

I couldn't stop thinking

about the disappointment Christmas morning would bring

to me and my siblings.

Why did I have to be the oldest?

- Beat you upstairs.

- I'm not playing your dumb games.

- Fine, I'm telling mom you called me dumb.

- [Millie] Princess Grace, I called her.

Our family royalty even though she was only nine.

Sharing a room with her would drive me crazy

again this night.

- You okay sweetie?

- [Millie] No, I wasn't okay.

Why had I overheard my parents?

The smile I thought would never leave my face was gone.

- Yes.

- Now don't stay up too late.

Grandma will be here in the morning.

Good night, Mill.

- [Millie] Grandma would be bringing the Christmas apron.

Grandma would fix everything.

- I can't wait to see grandma.

Remember how she toasted our socks

near the fireplace last year

so our feet would be warm at night?

Remember that Mill, remember when--

- Go to sleep, Grace.

- Not until you tell me your Christmas apron wish.

- I'm keeping mine secret.

- No fair, we always share our apron wishes.

- [Millie] Forget it, Princess Grace.

- Doesn't matter, I already know.

- Really?

- Mary Lou from your dance class told me, pointe shoes.

- Does everybody in this town

have to know everybody else's business?

For your information,

it's a wish that will never go in the apron pocket

because it's too expensive.

- You don't think I know that?

There's a war going on.

Still, this is just a wish.

[gentle music]

I know grandma's apron really isn't magical

but I want to pretend just one more year.

- You didn't tell mother about what Mary Lou said, did you?

Good, our little secret then.

- Pointe shoes, it's a wonderful wish.

If anyone deserves it, you do.

But if your wish is too expensive,

my wish is way too expensive for the Christmas apron.

- What's your wish?

- It's a secret, remember?

But I'll tell you anyways.

Are you ready?

- A piano like the one at grandma's house.

- Oh Princess Grace.

- With all the keys too.

And I'll run home from school and practice for hours.

My fingers will dance over the keys

just like you do on stage.

Wouldn't that be wonderful, Mill?

Introducing the amazing Caster Sisters,

wouldn't that be great?

- It's a nice wish.

- Too big for the Christmas apron?

- Maybe next year.

- Mmhmm.

- [Millie] I felt heavy

and kind of sick to my stomach.

Was it Grace's sappy fantasy

or the knowledge that her wish would never come true?

That darn tear.

My little sister's wish was a whole soul wish.

[children laughing]

- Grandma!

- At the end of his letter,

grandpa said he misses his little angels very much

but he'll be home next year in time for Christmas.

- Grandma!

- Oh, there's my ballerina.

Mmm.

- Good morning, grandma.

- Good morning?

More like good afternoon.

We were starting to get worried about you.

Your daddy said we should let you sleep.

- Is daddy home?

- Come and gone I'm afraid,

the Robertson's needed some help with a leaky roof.

- [Grace] I miss daddy.

- Well, since we're all here,

I think maybe it's time for--

- The Christmas apron.

- You took the words right out of my mouth.

- Ready grandma?

- Yes, would you hand me my suitcase, darling?

- [Millie] Here mommy, let me help you.

- [Grandma] Oh, good girl, thank you.

- [Grace] You're welcome, grandma.

- Let' see, [gasps].

- [Millie] Grandma.

- Oh, there it is.

The Christmas apron.

Now, is this just any old apron we wear around the house?

- [Millie] No grandma.

- No, and do you know why?

Because this apron is very special.

This apron has seen our family through the hard times.

We've wiped tears away from our faces,

it's shooed unwanted chickens out of the kitchen.

It's carried tomatoes and apples

and even puppies in from an early frost.

This apron,

well it's the last thing to be seen

by those who we love

and we wave goodbye from the porch.

- Don't forget, it makes Christmas wishes come true

like my p-- - William,

if you tell, your wish won't come true!

- Whew, that was a close one.

- Okay, listen very carefully,

the apron is going to hang next to the fireplace

for one day.

So no later than bedtime tomorrow,

because then we'll be just a few days away from Christmas.

So don't be tardy.

And until then,

our Christmas apron

will do nothing except collect Christmas wishes.

And only one wish, mister.

- Say, who wants to come with me

to deliver bread and help widow Anderson

get ready for her move?

- [Kids] Me!

- Go get your coats and mittens.

- [Grace] Come on, William, come on.

- [William] Wait for me, wait for me.

- There we go.

- Is grandpa doing well?

- Oh, as well as can be expected, dear.

What is it, Millie, is everything alright?

- Can you tell me the story now?

I can't wait till Christmas Eve

without grandpa being here.

- You do seem a little anxious.

Is everything alright, Millie?

- I'm worried about mama and daddy.

I'm old enough to know

that Christmas costs money but--

- Oh, I see.

You're growing up too fast, Millie.

It was just last Christmas

you were solely focused on your own wish.

But Christmas,

Christmas isn't about what's happening around us.

It's about what's happening inside of us

and I think Christmas is happening inside of you,

Millie, my girl.

You know, aprons are funny things

and I think most people take them for granted.

- But we know better.

- But we know better, that's right.

Aprons, they help us

do the most important work there is, Millie

and that's why this story is so important.

A long time ago before you or I were born,

there lived a young couple, Jed and Josie.

And on their wedding day,

they decided to move out into the open country

where they could be closer to God and to each other.

They left their city life,

they sold most of what they had,

packed up a wagon and they headed out

for the open sea of grasses known as the prairie lands.

Well their house, it wasn't much

but Josie she set to work

and she made it a home.

She took her city dresses

and she made curtains

and sheets and dish rags.

She even had some scraps left over to make--

- The Christmas apron.

- Do you want to tell the story?

Anyway, she put the scraps together

with ruffles and ribbon to create--

- Christmas apron.

- An apron.

Now Jed, he didn't think too much of the apron

but Josie she knew better

and every day, Josie's apron

helped her do many, many tasks.

It gave her a place to wipe her hands

when she made biscuits for supper,

it helped her carry in vegetables from her garden

and wood from the wood mill

and on chilly nights,

she carried in new puppies in from the barn

to sleep by the warm fire.

And when Jed would go of to work,

she'd wave goodbye to him with it.

And when he came back--

- She'd wave him in.

- Yes.

And the apron kept her dresses clean

when guests came over

and she could shoo chickens from the house

and it covered her tummy when they were expecting.

Well, one night when Jed had gone into town,

a terrible blizzard swept in

and Josie noticed that Old Gal, the milk cow

had wandered off form her pen scared of the storm.

So Josie followed the hoof prints to a cave

where Old Gal had taken shelter from the snow.

No sooner did she find Old Gal,

when pain shot through her and she fell to the ground.

- The baby was coming.

- Yes, so Josie took the apron

and she hung it up outside of the cave as high as she could

hoping that Jed would see it.

And then, she prayed her Christmas wish out loud.

- Father, please bring this baby

safely into the world.

- Little did she know,

at that same moment,

Jed was saying the exact same prayer.

And when he finished and looked up,

he saw the apron waving, waving him in,

it was like Josie was waving him in for supper.

So running to the cave,

he got there just in time

to wrap up their new baby in the apron.

So the young family,

they spent their first Christmas in the cave

daddy, mommy, Old Gal and--

- You grandma, you were the new baby.

- I was?

- Do you think the apron

made their Christmas wish come true?

- Well, we didn't get anything from Santa that year

but our gift came straight from heaven.

You see, the apron doesn't have special powers, Millie

but it did become a symbol of our family.

Aprons, they help us do the most important work there is,

family work,

the work that says I love you.

- [Millie] I wanted so much to share the secret

but the words wouldn't come.

I had always believed in grandma's Christmas apron.

This year, I would need to believe a little more.

[gentle music]

- I won't be out late.

Don't wait up.

- The most important work, family.

- [Millie Voiceover] My mother always said

when someone's in need, we all pitch in.

The Lord counts on us to pass around the blessings

and my father was the greatest example of this.

- Dear God, thank you for my family

and for my father's good example of service.

Thank you for my mother's kindness to all.

Thank you for William's smile,

thank you that grandma could be here for Christmas

and please protect grandpa overseas.

Please help Grace and me to be understanding

for what we cannot have this year.

In Jesus' name, amen.

[gentle music]

Merry Christmas.

- [Kids] Merry Christmas.

- Is daddy here?

- [William] I don't know, I haven't seen him.

- [Grace] It's daddy.

- Well, come on.

Let's go see if your Christmas wishes came true.

Come on, let's go, let's go, let's go.

- Let's go. - Come on.

- [Millie] Grace, wait up, you're gonna [giggling]

- [Grace] Look at that.

- Merry Christmas.

- What are we waiting for?

[giggling]

- [Millie] Which one is yours?

- [Grace] I think this one.

- [Millie] This one's William's.

- Alright, grandma first.

Here you go, mom.

Merry Christmas.

- Thank you, darling, merry Christmas.

- [William] What did you get, grandma?

- [Grandma] I don't know.

- [Dennis] And to my love.

- Oh, thank you.

- Paint, this is exactly what I wanted.

- [Millie] That's wonderful, William.

- [Grace] I can't wait to see what you paint now.

- And two special wishes

for my two very special girls.

Merry Christmas.

- [Grace And Millie] Merry Christmas, daddy.

- Millie, what is it?

- [Millie Voiceover] My heart raced.

Had I made the wrong wish?

Had our family tradition lost its magic?

There before my eyes

were the prettiest pink pointe shows

I could ever have dreamed of.

How could this be?

Nobody had known.

- The apron really is magical.

- [Millie] Except...

- You gave your wish for me?

But what did you get, Grace?

- Yes, Princess, what did you get?

- I'm sorry I told your wish.

I had to see your face when you opened your wish, Mill.

A metronome?

- That's not funny.

- No it's not

but I think she's going to need it for that piano of hers.

- [Dennis] What do we have here?

- Millie, you're the only one who knew.

You gave your wish away for me

just like I did for you.

Oh thank you, Millie.

[piano playing]

Daddy, it needs some tuning.

- Well, I'm not going anywhere today

so let's see what we have.

Let's hear it.

- That was improbable, impossible.

I want to know how this happened.

- [Grace] The Christmas apron, Millie.

- Well, suffice it to say

there are angels in our little town.

That's the magic that happened this Christmas.

- And because your parents are always thinking of others,

not just during the hard times,

the dozens of loaves of bread

your mom has delivered

and your daddy's willingness to always help someone in need

shoveling or fixing a car, mending a roof.

- But still, pointe shoes and a piano

in the middle of a war

with not even a nickel to spare.

Sorry mama, I overheard.

- The piano was a miracle.

Widow Anderson had a piano

and she didn't want to take it with her in the move.

She asked if we could find a good use for it.

- But what about the shoes?

- Well, let's just say that Mistress Allen

thinks the world of her star pupil

and would go to the ends of the Earth

to make sure you're ready for the Nutcracker next year.

- So we all got our whole could wishes this year?

- Especially me.

- Now remember, Millie,

where the gifts came from is our little secret.

- We already know mama,

it's the Christmas apron.

The apron is a symbol of our family.

- And you're going to have a Christmas apron

of your own one day with that attitude.

Thank you, dear.

- Are you coming?

- For?

- The amazing Caster Sisters.

- Really?

Come here.

[piano playing] [gentle music]

- [Millie Voiceover] I learned a valuable lesson

that Christmas that has stuck with me through the years,

aprons help us do the most important work of all,

family work,

the work that says I love you.

[gentle music]