On Sept. 6, 2003, halfway through his 13-month deployment, Southworth and his military police unit paid a visit to the orphanage. They played and chatted with the children; Southworth was talking with one little girl when Ala'a dragged his body to the soldier's side. *** Then, around Christmas, a sister told Southworth that Ala'a was getting too big. He would have to move to a government-run facility within a year. *** ''Best case scenario was that he would stare at a blank wall for the rest of his life,'' Southworth said. *** To this day, he recalls the moment when he resolved that that would not happen.

Southworth always says Ala'a picked him, not the other way around. They were brought together, Southworth believes, by a ''web of miracles.''

Read this heartwarming story by Carrie Antlfinger, "The improbable love story of a U.S. soldier and an Iraqi orphan," and then share this little "miracle" with your loved ones as you celebrate this Christmas.