An incomplete Christmas

By Aaron

Mind racing, my body lying completely still, I stared at my clock and wondered what lied in store for me in the darkness of my living room.

I counted down the seconds until 8:00. Like I have for the past 9 years of my life, I wait up for hours for my digital clock to turn 8:00 on Christmas. The clock suddenly read 8:00 and I jumped out of bed and into my parent’s room where I shake my parents awake. This year it’s only my mom. My dad has been in Saudi Arabia since November fixing military guns for our troops. I gently rub and shake my mom awake and she grumbles, is it already 8:00? I say yes and she sighs. She slowly opens her eyes and says, fine, go get your sister. I grin and dash back into my room.

I rush to the corner of my room where I open my French horn case. I gaze into its golden beauty. I smile grimly. I take the horn out of its case and walk to my sister’s bedroom. I put the mouthpiece on the horn and with a big breath, I blow ferociously on it. The sound comes out loud and obnoxious. My sister’s eyes suddenly open like a robot’s and she jumps out of bed and down the hall. I watch my sister practically drag my mom down the hall. I run back to my room where I grab a pair of slippers and my favorite Christmas sweater. I slip it on carefully, trying not to undo the stitching. I run out of my room and stop, my feet skidding on the floor. I think, and run back down the hall and into my parent’s room where I pick up Molly, our little black cocker spaniel. She wags her tail as we walk down the hallway. I walk into the living room and see that my sister has already gotten her presents separated from my mom’s and mine. I sit down in front of our glistening Christmas tree and let Molly go. She walks straight over to where my mom is sitting and sits right next to her on the floor. I pass out mom’s presents and then we dig into them as my mom fumbles with the camera, trying to take pictures while opening her presents as well. In less than an hour, we’re finished. Our other dog Murphy comes walking in and starts to chew on a discarded box. I laugh as I watch my sister position bow all over his beautiful golden body. My mom smoothly asks smoothly, did you get everything you wanted? I smile and look from my piles of new gifts to the picture of my dad in his dark blue uniform on the wall and say, almost everything.