A Smile Through a Tear is a collection of short stories featuring humorous and dramatic pieces in one volume. The humorous stories include the tales of: a telephone company executive who must figure out how to use his phone before he is exposed as a fraud; a woman who has accidentally introduced a mysterious white powder into the State Capitol building; and a man whose entire job is to sit on a park bench, and who has trouble meeting that obligation. The dramatic episodes include the stories of: a father trying to protect his kids from a lifestyle that sent him to prison; a group of WWI soldiers facing overwhelming odds; a space traveler who must make a terrible choice; and a man whose best Christmas would be anyone else's worst. These tales and many others are brought together in one book to present the reader with A Smile Through a Tear.