My husband left for a “business trip” just before Christmas, but his odd behavior raised suspicion. Using my fitness tracker, I discovered he wasn’t in Boston but at a nearby hotel. Overwhelmed with fear and doubt, I raced there, expecting betrayal.

Bursting into the hotel room, I found not infidelity, but a heart-stopping surprise: my long-lost father, wheelchair-bound but alive, sitting beside Shawn. Overwhelmed, I learned Shawn had secretly searched for my father after piecing together scant details from my late mother.

My father, separated from me since childhood due to a bitter divorce, had been trying to reconnect for years. Tears flowed as he shared stories and reassured me he never stopped loving me.

Shawn’s plan had been to reunite us on Christmas morning, but my impulsiveness revealed the surprise early. As snow fell outside, the three of us laughed, shared memories, and healed wounds long thought irreparable. It was the Christmas miracle I never saw coming.