I was walking along side my father in a store called King's at age 12 in Caldwell Idaho about an half hour drive to our home on the orchard farm. Dad was really excited as turned to me "SEE this is really GREAT!" Now my father was usually a very cynical man. He didn't get very excited about just anything only once a year around Christmas time would he let his kid-self pop out for the Christmas events. When I was younger he would take me out for ice cream while we bought Mom a gift. I always liked getting my mom a cute pj set or a house coat. My Dad loved Christmas in a special way that really stood out to me growing up. As we would walked through K-mart late at night when I was like 8 or 9 years old, Dad would declare that Mom should have everything on her list. It was always very important to him if we didn't get what we wanted on our list each holiday year. By the time I was 12 years old I felt like I should start buying my own gifts without that one outing with my father. It was becoming more and more awkward around my father the older I grew and the less I felt safe in his judgmental ways or his short temper. Soon my sister Dana and I just stopped going out with him for that one Christmas gift to our mom. Now I always thought it was very odd as I was growing up that my mom wrote out her own list of the things she wanted for Christmas and my dad never deviated from that list. Standing next to my father inside that old Kings shop looking up at the gift he had in his hands, the one he kept going on and on about "SEE this is really GREAT!" He said again and I slowly nodded. "Tell me now what do you really think about it?" He asked me as we walked together so I stammered "Wow! That is really cool! Dana will love it!" While thinking to myself "I would love it too!" Dad grinned big and bought it without any hesitation. The triangle shape radio box had an alarm clock and a cassette tape player all in one. Over our morning breakfast at a greasy spoon cafe Dad went on and on about it, how we could listen to our tapes and he thought Dana needed an alarm clock in getting up to work on the farm. Then he described the radio part of it and I thought I was going to die for it sounded just like all 3 things from my own Christmas list all in one. but I never said anything about myself just carried Dana's gift off to wrap. Dad hated knowing what we all were getting each other for Christmas, he would make us stop talking when he was around. Then he would get big funny shape boxes to wrap a gift so it would be hard to know what it was at first glance. When it came time to open gifts I was happy for my sister Dana for what Dad was getting her was really awesome, something I knew we could all share. But I opened my gift from Dad first only to find the very same triangle radio! I was stunned and Dad laughed for a long time at the look on my face. Dana said "Oh isn't that just perfect for you Deb!" as she opened her gift to realize why I sat there so stunned. We both hugged our father at the same time and even though we shared a bedroom on each of our dressers sat a red lit digital clock, tape player and radio all in one from our father who loved to play Santa Claus. 10 years later when it finally stopped working all together I couldn't help but chuckle at how proud my father was to have fooled both of his girls into thinking that the gift was for the other sibling. After Dana and I had opened our gifts Dad shook his head saying "I am so amazed that neither of you said that YOU wanted it for yourself, even though this is the second year you both wrote down an alarm clock, a radio and a tape player. I was really amazed at how thoughtful you both were to each other." I remembered wondering why he was so amazed. It was such a funny moment when I opened my gift thinking for a split second "Uh-oh I got Dana's gift by mistake." Only to soon be battling over who gets to play the radio first and then the volume lever was key to winning the battle of wills. When I remember my childhood the good memories always come from Christmas time when both my mom and dad sprung to life in wrapping up gifts even things like tooth paste and gum, or baking 4 different flavors of fudge. My Dad would setup the tree and us kids would sing songs while hanging the orderments. Mom would crack the peanut brittle and the whole world felt so happy!
Monday, December 20, 2010
A Christmas Gift
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You might remember this, but I think it's significant in knowing your father. When we were young, the years living on the farm, there were a few years we were "poor". Most of the time, we would each get one gift from Santa, set out for us to wake up to in the morning. Any other gift was from aunts and uncles. One year, I remember getting used Christmas gifts, and wondering why. But I always got a new barbie doll with clothes made by hand.
ReplyDeleteWhen it came to gifts from Santa, your Dad always seemed to get the short end of the stick. I remember one year when he was 13 he got a SHOE SHINE KIT. Seriously. He was upset of course, and angry. It was our one chance for something special, and he got cold water in the face. It would have been better if he got nothing.
I remember my Mom getting mad and crying and yelling out at him about being ungrateful. "You don't know how hard it is to shop for everyone".
Years after, as the family was more financially sound, the gifts improved. It was a very happy time with all the family together, playing games and no one, except Mom, was allowed to be in a bad mood.
I appreciate hearing this good memories with your Dad.
Love you!
My poor father! This along with the story he had to shot his own dog, makes me realize how he thought my mother was a true angel and a great mom! He often looked at us kids like we were so spoiled even when we were complaining to him about something mom did....really he must have been thinking "You darn kids should try living with MY mom!" :-)
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