An Unbelievable Gift

About two weeks before Christmas, when I was ten years old, I did the unthinkable and I brought my little sister into the secret.

Growing up, my family lived on the South Shore Railroad line in a northern Indiana town, the steel train tracks right next to my home.  I didn’t know at the time that our family lived pay check to pay check, going to the small neighborhood grocery store when we had the money.  I also didn’t realize that the grocery store owner gave us food on credit, only to be partially paid on my father’s next payday.

This brings me to one memorable Christmas. As I said, I was ten years old and knew right from wrong.  I found my sister and told her I had to show her something of such great importance, but she couldn’t tell a soul. Our parents were doing errands and I just remember my older sister, by six years, was in charge of the three kids left at home.

In the quietest voice I could muster (and I never used a quiet voice), I said, “Come here, I have to show you something,  you won’t believe it”.  Of course being a younger sister, she did as I told her.  We both crept into the sunroom, which actually was our parent’s bedroom, and opened the bottom drawer of their dresser.  There it was….a musical jewelry box, all pink with gold swirls on the top.  We opened the lid and the most glorious ballerina popped into view while playing a waltz .  I ran my hands over the top, the sides, and touched the ballerina as gently as I could.  I was mesmerized.  We closed the dresser drawer after a bit and went out to play, promising that we would not tell a soul.

The anticipation was just about as much as I could take and not just blurt out that I had peeked and saw the gift.  I, however, held it inside and the guilty feeling just about over powered me.  I opened the small box that was handed to me on Christmas Day, just as I was about to cry.  I was so relieved that I could finally hold this gift in my hands and put it on my dresser, but the magic was missing. I acted surprised and happy, but inside, I told myself that I would never sneak around again. I am sure my parents were happy to give such a generous gift and to see my happiness.  There is something to be said about happiness, honesty,  gratefulness. A gift of honesty, happiness, and gratefulness is a package worth wrapping and keeping.