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My Parents Were Broke But I Got The Best Xmas Present
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Merry Christmas to everyone! Christmas is the time when everyone expects to find a miracle under the Christmas tree. But what is a miracle? A new device? A bicycle? Or maybe something more poetic? Tammy knows exactly what her answer would be, because a Christmas miracle actually happened to her once when she was 12.
Tammy has a wonderful family. There are four of them – her mom, her dad and her younger brother. They’re a regular middle class family, not very wealthy, but her parents have always done everything they can for their kids. They always received small gifts from them during the year even for no reason, just because they wanted to make them happy. But Christmas…Christmas was something special! Her parents spent weeks looking for the perfect presents for Tammy and her brother. It seemed to never be enough for them! They had lots of presents of all colors and sizes under the Christmas tree every year, and when they unwrapped all the presents on Christmas day there was always an avalanche of toys, devices, clothes and all the stuff that makes children happy.
You know that saying about “giving presents is more pleasant than receiving them”? Nonsense! Tammy always thought that finding a good present for someone is an irritating task. You spend days looking for it, and can’t even tell if a person is sincerely happy to get it or just pretends in order to please you. So for her, Christmas was always about receiving presents. However, that year when she turned 12 was a bit different from the previous ones. Her family faced difficult times. There was the financial crisis and her dad lost his job. They had to move to a smaller house because they couldn’t afford their previous one. Her mom had to find a second job.
She and her brother were still just kids, but they felt that hard times were coming. Her parents started trying to teach them to be reasonable and even thrifty. But they didn’t mind – her parents managed to maintain their high spirits, and they didn’t feel as though something tragic was happening. Now Tammy knows that those were truly hard times, when her family found themselves with enormous debts and her dad had to account for every cent.
However, some time in September her mom started preparing them for the fact that that Christmas would be different from the usual one. “I’m sorry kids, I don’t want to be mean, but this year I’m not sure we’ll be able to give you that many presents. Do you mind?” That year Tammy was especially looking forward to Christmas because the new year would give them new hope. She saw that her mom and dad were both pretty tired and they all needed a break. That was why decorating the Christmas tree somehow felt really special.
The amount of gifts they got was a lot smaller than it used to be. But she was still looking forward to hers. She tried not to pay attention to the presents under the tree and to not read the tags, but one box attracted her a lot. It was a big box in pretty green and red wrapping paper and she couldn’t help looking at who it was for: it was her dad’s present for mom. “Wow, lucky mom!” she thought.
On Christmas day, they woke up early and were dying to open their presents. Her dad opened the door and let them in, and her mom was already there, smiling with joy. They at once tried to apologize that they wouldn’t get as many presents as usual, and looked a bit embarrassed, but Tammy managed to calm them down. After all, it wasn’t a big deal! She knew they couldn’t afford much. Her brother got a new sweater and an art kit, and she received a beautiful necklace, and they were absolutely delighted by the presents. Then there was only one present that hadn’t been unwrapped – the biggest box containing her mom’s present, the one that Tammy had liked a lot. But…then something unexpected happened. Her mom took it and gave it to her daughter. She didn’t understand what was going on. Why would she do that? It had to be some mistake! She checked the tag and sure enough it said that it was for her mom. She was confused. She took it and didn’t open it, and just looked at her mom silently.
Then she went up to her and whispered: “But mom…” But she was just looking at her smiling. “Come on, Tammy, open it! What are you waiting for?” She didn’t have the guts to ask questions about what was really going on, and just opened the box. It was a pair of beautiful new ice skates! But they were a bit too big for her, she could wear them only with thick socks, so it was clear they were for her mom. Then she looked into her mom’s eyes and suddenly understood. She was so happy looking at her, and Tammy realized that for her giving one more present to her daughter was more valuable than getting a present herself. Her parents were happiest when they could make their children happy.
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