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All year long, people like me collect gently used bras and feminine hygiene products, shampoos, and toothbrushes and during the holiday season, in every town, village, and subdivision, there are Santa’s helpers making sure that the most essential needs are not forgotten.
Finland! We don’t hear much about it. A small country with more saunas than lakes -and they are famous for their lakes- a coffee lovers’ paradise. Finland, the land I fell in love with so many years ago.
Santa, in his infinite wisdom, decided to bring me a battery-operated, cordless snow shovel for Christmas.
Santa, who, as you know, I happen to sleep with, sat in his chair and watched me unpack. He grinned from one ear to the other, like he had just won the lottery. I believe in being grateful. One doesn’t complain about a present ever -you return later, after the Holidays- but a cordless, battery-operated snowblower? Seriously?
…So he paused. And the Grinch put his hand to his ear.
And he did hear a sound rising over the snow.
It started in low. Then it started to grow.
But the sound wasn’t sad! Why, this sound sounded merry!
I have never written to you. The one and only time I left a Christmas letter on the window seal was back in Austria when I was only a little girl, and because of our tradition, the note had been addressed to the Christmas Angel and not you.
He looked at the Santa’s costume, which was displayed right at the front door, and when I saw my husband’s face I knew we would not leave the estate sale without it. It was a nicely made outfit. Red fur jacket, and pants, a matching hat, a black belt which later on would hold a fake belly in place, white gloves, and even gold-colored glasses without the lenses.
Today is Saint Nikolaus day, and in a few hours, right after dawn, little children in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and many other countries, will sit in the living room and kitchen, huddled up together waiting for the Saint to arrive. Even now fifty years later and five thousand miles away, I still celebrate the day and I remember my childhood.
Last year around this time I was moping around. I missed my best friend, reminisced about her and the good times we had. I thought about other good friends I had lost and all the ones we had left behind when we moved out of state.
I wanted to reach out to the city and the people. I was ready for a girl’s night out, or just some female companionship. I wanted to meet people other than neighbors and people we work for -or with.
Santa brought me a tablet for Christmas. Furthermore, this year Santa tried to be very sneaky and he used the Amazon account of a good friend instead of our own, to hide his tracks from Mrs. Santa.