The Christmas Clock

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It was the last day of school, and I was watching the clock from my desk. I could smell homemade dinner buns, bread, cakes, pies, cookies and squares coming from our kitchen in my mind.

I could see my dad and my little brother bringing in the Christmas tree. The clock on the wall was moving slower and slower as the seconds were being dragged by Father Time. The teacher asked her class what everyone was doing for Christmas. I looked up at the clock— 10 minutes to go before it was time to go home.My teacher started with the students nearest the door, and I was sitting at the back of the class next to the windows.

Five minutes to the bell, and we were only halfway through listening to my classmates tell what they were going to be doing over the Christmas holidays. I was listening and still watching the clock. The teacher then stopped the class and said, “I am going to be doing a Christmas storytelling, and I want our last class assignment handed in before you leave — your letters to Santa.”

She then said, “If you have not done it, you will have to stay after class and give it to me.” The clock was now saying three minutes, as I watched my classmates reach into their desk to pull out a piece of paper and a pencil to quickly write a couple things down on the paper. I reached into my desk and pulled out my letter. I stood up and walked to the front of the classroom and handed it to my teacher. I turned around to see my fellow classmates coming up behind me. I looked at the clock one more time as the bell rang out; the students were all now free. My teacher then cried out, “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and everyone be safe! See you all in the New Year.”

As I was leaving the school and walking home, I was thinking about what to get Mom and Dad for Christmas presents. I put the key into the lock and turned it to open the back door of the house. I then said, “Hello, I’m home.” There was not a sound in the house. After I took off my coat and boots, I looked down to see our family pets, our dog Dillinger and our cat Sandy, sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor, just looking at me, coming from the boot room.

I was walking from the kitchen when I could hear talking coming from the living room. It was my little brother and sister. I stepped into the living room to see what those two were up to. And yes, they were up to no good. They had a piece of paper on the floor and it was a drawing of the living room. They were putting X’s, where the couch and Christmas tree were. They both looked up at me, and then my brother said, “How would you like to catch Santa as he drops presents off here?” I looked at both of them, and then said. “So, you to want to wreck Christmas for the family.” I took a closer look at the map of the living room floor. I shook my head and then asked them, “Okay, what do these two X’s on the map mean?” One was under the Christmas tree. My sister said, “That is where I will be hiding,” and the other X was behind the TV. I told those two, “This will not work and it will wreck Christmas for everyone, like Mom, our Dad and especially our grandparents. I would not want to be in your Shoes. I then turned and headed up the stairs to my bedroom. When Mom and Dad get home, I will let them know what those two are up to. I then sat down at my desk and started my homework, so once it was done, I could enjoy my holidays. As I finished my homework, I heard Mom calling me for supper. I yelled down to her, “Okay, Mom, I’m on my way.”

I closed my books and headed down the stairs for supper. I entered the kitchen to find just Mom and Dad. I took my regular spot at the table. I asked where the rest of the family was, and Mom said, “Your brother and sister are having supper at their friend’s house tonight.” Mom and Dad started talking about their days at work. I enjoyed listening to both of their nightly reports, as Mom would call them. After supper, Mom cleaned off the table and I started to do the dishes. I helped her as Dad went into the living room to start a fire in the fireplace and sit down to read his nightly newspaper.

After the kitchen was cleaned up and ready for the breakfast meal, I went to join Dad in the living room, only to find him sleeping in his La-Z-Boy chair with his feet up, his paper on his lap, and his glasses just hanging off the end of his nose. Mom went over to Dad and took off his glasses before they could fall off. I then turned on the TV for my favourite show that was about to come on. I was lying on the floor as my show was about to start, and both the family pets came and lay next to me. Dillinger was an Alaskan malamute and he was the color of the beach. I looked at Mom and asked, “What would you and Dad like for Christmas?” She was busy darning some socks; she stopped, and looked down at me, then said, ”Hmmmmm , I don’t know what I want for Christmas. I have everything a mother could want — a good set of kids, a great husband, and a roof over everyone’s head, and today is Christmas Eve and Santa will be coming.” I just smiled as I looked at Mom, and she smiled back at me. Then she started back to work on my brother’s socks again.

 

 

There was a knock on the back door and Dillinger jumped up and started barking and headed for the back door. This woke Dad up, and I was already on my way to let my brother and sister in. I opened the door to find both of them outside. Then, with Dillinger barking and his tail now wagging, they both came in with wrapped gifts for the family. I locked the door once again as my brother and sister took off their coats and boots. It was now nine o’clock and I was feeling very tired, so I said goodnight to everyone and went right up to bed. Right behind me was Dillinger and Sandy. Sandy always went into my sister’s room to sleep for the night, but I thought “Oh well.” As I was about to drift off to sleep, I heard Mom and Dad tell my brother and sister it was time to go to bed because Santa was coming tonight. I heard both of them say, “Okay, Mom and Dad,” and off those two went to bed. I then went to sleep. The house was dark when Dillinger woke me up with a growling noise; my bedroom door was open. The clock in my bedroom said five minutes to midnight. Dillinger and Sandy took off like a shot. Dillinger was barking all the way down the stairs; he stopped right at the entrance to the living room, still barking and deep growling. Sandy was hissing, and his back was arched. They were looking for someone that did not belong in their home at this time of night. I turned the light on in my bedroom and went running. Dad was in front of me only by a few seconds. Dillinger stopped barking and Sandy stopped hissing all of a sudden. Dad had turned on the lights in the living room and caught my brother and sister in the corner of the living room, crying, as Dillinger and Sandy must’ve scared both of them. I looked at the clock on the mantle. It said two minutes to Christmas. Dad then pointed toward the stairs and told all three of us to get to bed or there would be no Christmas and he would tell Santa himself. As all three of us went running up the stairs, Dillinger and Sandy watched us go up the stairs. Dad shut the lights off and headed back to bed.

Anytime someone turns on the living room lights, a glow can be seen on the ceiling and walls in my room. As the house was settling back down, I left my bedroom door open. I heard the chimes from my mother’s grandfather clock ringing twelve times, and then there was a glow of Christmas lights coming from the living room that filled my bedroom. Both Dillinger’s and Sandy’s heads turned to the bedroom door and they both got up and headed back down the stairs.

Dillinger was not barking this time — it was if he knew who was down in the living room. I left my bedroom and snuck down the stairs. I heard a man’s and lady’s voices; my heart was pounding in my chest as I was trying to control my breathing. I heard a man say, “Good job, my boys, and thank you for helping Mrs. Claus and me tonight” Mrs. Claus then said, “And thank you, my boys, for your letter warning us on what the children were planning for Santa tonight.” Santa reached into his toy sack and pulled out special presents for Sandy and Dillinger. As Santa was giving them their presents, Dillinger and Sandy turned their heads toward the steps; both Santa and Mrs. Claus looked as well. With my back against the wall on the bottom step, I was building my up courage to walk around the corner into the living room to see Santa and Mrs. Claus, when suddenly the Christmas lights went out and the house was dark once again. As I was looking into the darkened room, I could smell fresh cut mistletoe and chocolate chip cookies in the air. I then turned back toward the steps and headed for my bedroom with Sandy and Dillinger behind me, eating their special presents.

My teacher will never believe my Christmas story.

 

 

From Santa’s White Christmas

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