October Turtle

by Thomas Keenan

I wrote this my senior year in college. 

With the cold wind whipping around her body, the tall red-haired girl walked silently, with a hint of a smile on her face. She should be feeling the icy grip of winter as it bites her nose and cheeks, but she has other things on her mind. Tucked under her arm was small square box, wrapped in green wrapping paper with little silver rocking horses on it. It was tied up with a large red velvet bow that just about covered up the top of the box. She was going to visit her boyfriend. The small box had been tucked away in her closet for a month now. She could barely contain the excitement as she thought about the look the gift would bring to her boyfriend's face. She smiled wider as she could hear the distant angelic voices of carolers.

A small boy in a bright green jacket stood by his mother's side as he tried to sing along with the large group of people. His long red stocking cap with the giant pom-pom on it draped over his red, chubby cheeks. He kept looking up at his parents with great joy and pleasure. He didn't know the words of the song, nor their meaning but liked the way they made him feel inside. Joy to the world . . . Not knowing what to do with his excitement, he started bouncing up and down with a smile and a loud giggle. His father stared down at him, still singing but with a smile on his face. He can see what Christmas is all about in the twinkling blue eyes of his son.

In a tiny little college apartment, a small group of friends, dressed in their best clothes, sat around a table. In the center of the table, flanked by two tall red candles, was a turkey cooked golden brown. Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer plays softly in the background, almost drowned out by the laughter of the students. Each one knows this is their last college Christmas together, yet it doesn't phase the festive atmosphere. They have tonight and the rest of next semester to deal with that issue. For now, they're just a group of friends, enjoying each other's company and the Christmas holiday.

In the silence of his room, a young man sits staring into the face of a beautiful young lady. They talk about everything but nothing. His only thoughts are about this special woman lying next to him. His hand softly caresses her face as the glow of a hundred colorful Christmas lights illuminates her gentle features. He had only met her a few months before, yet he felt he knew her for a lifetime. His face almost hurt from smiling too much. He thought he was going to spend this Christmas season alone. However, he suddenly found himself involved with this brown-eyed girl. He could feel Christmas in his heart. Suddenly, he could not take it anymore. He bent near her now and touched his lips to hers for the first time. She accepted them warmly, and his heart leapt through his chest.

A couple of old friends, a young man and woman, sit in a white beat-up "truck," talking about the past three Christmas seasons. They reminisce about old friends and wonder what is happening with them now. They remember how different they were three years ago and even just last year. They start to laugh together. He points out one house, completely outlined in white lights, and trees in the front covered in blue lights. They talk about how they might decorate their houses in the future. They wonder how long it will be before each of them gets to share the holidays with someone special. They both sigh deeply. It doesn't matter, though. Their friendship has survived so much; they are just thankful to have each other. Friendship. . . that is what Christmas is all about.

A small girl sits in front of the television, blankly staring at the screen. The Charlie Brown Christmas tree in the corner of the living room casts an eerie light across her face. In her eyes, a deep sadness remains. Her stomach rumbles in hunger. She fights back tears as she thinks about how all her friends were getting Barbie dolls for Christmas. She knows she won't be getting one. Santa Claus has always been pretty cheap when it came to her house.

About to burst into tears, she hears the doorbell ring. Her mother is standing at the door, talking to a Federal Express man. He holds a package slightly smaller than a shoe box. She gets to the door just in time to hear the package is for her. Her mother, confused, demands to know from where it came. She couldn't understand why her daughter was getting a package and was concerned. Standing in the cold with snowflakes falling all around him, the man says the package just came in, and the only other name on it is Santa Clause.

Before her mother could object anymore, the little girl grabs the package and rips it open. Inside she finds a beautiful new Barbie doll in a gorgeous green dress. Her eyes light up with the glow of a million Christmas lights, tears forming in the corners. Her mother, speechless, starts to cry herself. The hunger in the girl suddenly goes away, and The Charlie Brown Christmas tree suddenly seems like the Rockerfeller Center tree. Unable to express herself, the little girl hugs the legs of the Federal Express man, and then jumps up into her mother's arms, all the sadness drifting faraway.

The Federal Express man, unable to control his smile turns and starts walking away. He looks up and winks at a lady in a car across the streeet. She smiles back at him and drives away. Sleigh bells ring in the distance.