Dr. Eboni Green
December 28, 2021
Christmas seemed to have arrived earlier that year, bringing with it an atmosphere of bliss and tranquility. I perceived the snow falling gracefully, over the busy street of New York City on Christmas Eve, through the tiny window of our apartment in Harlem. Since the recession had deprived my father of his bank managing post twelve years ago, he had brought me up while striving on the streets of Harlem collecting trash cans and selling them off to recycling companies. Thus, barely making ends meet.
I sighed deeply, staring at the gloomy snowfall. Everyone else expected various gifts on Christmas, followed by a smoking hot turkey dinner and a luscious cake. While I just waited for that day to pass like any other, hopefully waiting for a time when I could taste a restaurant’s food. I collected menus of different restaurants in Harlem and gazed at them daily, my mouth watering profusely just by the gorgeous illustrations. However, I would never let their shadow reach my father’s eye in an attempt to spare his feelings.
“Merry Christmas, dad!” I exclaimed, dashing forwards to embrace him affectionately, he returned it with a cold hug with a casual ‘Merry Christmas’.
“Did you boil the eggs?” he demanded, rubbing the dirt off his tattered old jeans and splashing the icy water on his face, which sweated profusely despite the freezing weather,
I froze in terror, as I had forgotten to do so and stared on the ground apologetically.
“You are a good-for-nothing lazy brat!” he scolded, clenching his chattering teeth, and charged inside the kitchen to boil them, as I wept bitterly lying on the floor mat. Being on the verge of teenage life, my mind seemed to wander off every now and then, imagining fancy toys and other luxurious objects like television and cars, which seemed quite ordinary to a majority of New York teens.
My eyelids jerked open as I felt a light pat on my trembling shoulder. My father looked at me with an unexpectedly tender and serene expression on his exhausted face.
“Harold!” he exclaimed, caressing my rosy cheek. “Would you take a walk with me to heaven?”
I gawked at his face with teary eyes, utterly perplexed at this peculiar request. However, I nodded slowly and leapt up to change into my best attire. We marched across the snowy street as the tranquility and spiritual bliss of Christmas drifted across the air contagiously, while the melodious carols sounding from the nearby church glorified the atmosphere.
We took the narrow lane on the left, and I viewed the silhouette of a gleaming place on the ground, which took my breath away….. Dunkin Donuts emerged like a Christmas card, with snowflakes gliding merrily around it and the name embossed on top in bold pink and orange. I looked at my father with glee as a tear of joy trickled down my puffed cheek and spilt on the ice below.
Upon entering the place, a tantalizing aroma of the sweetened delights filled my nostrils, making me salivate. My eyes sparkled intensely as I stared inside the glass shield to notice a wide variety of assorted doughnuts, from the plain glazed and chocolate ones to blueberry, strawberry and jelly ones. Despite being spoiled for choice, I raised my finger towards the classic chocolate doughnut and glanced at my father, who, to my utter astonishment, stood behind me with a medium-sized box containing all.
I bit into a tiny piece of heavenly delight and felt a soothing sensation conquering my skinny body, which seemed to gain some strength and warmth. Burping lightly, I finished the last chunk and felt a surge of satisfaction as well as gratitude at my father’s victorious attempt to glorify my Christmas. Placing my small soft hands on my father’s large rough ones, I stared at his tired yet, loving face as a surge of intense affection flowed across my eyes for him. He looked at me and smiled gracefully. His eyelids were dark and puffy, which clearly portrayed the sleepless nights he had spent worrying about our future and the meagre income he earned.
Dad…you have the biggest heart in the world, I thought as I continued to gaze onto his affectionate visage, which filled my heart with an extreme love for him. No one is there like you in this entire universe, I said under my breath, as a tiny tear trickled down my chubby cheek and fell on the ground. I moved my face away from my dad’s to prevent him from seeing my tears of bliss. That night, a tremendous amount of affection gushed through my heart for him like never before. And I realized that I desired nothing except for his presence in my life
Dazzled by the satisfying experience, I walked out of the venue holding my father’s arm as we hummed the heartening Christmas carols and left behind us, the bright lights of heaven glimmering in the starry night.
Welcome to this bedtime story video for caregivers. This story has been designed to soothe your soul as you drift into a deep and relaxing sleep. As you listen to this story, allow your heart to open your body to relax your mind to truly feel the essence of this soothing Christmas tale for caregivers.
We hope you had a Merry Christmas!
