Christmastime 1940 Page 16

  Gabriel ran up next to Tommy. “Mommy, he brought presents! They’re under the tree!”

  Lillian smiled and took Drooms by the hand. “Well, let’s take a look! Come in, Charles.”

  He followed her in, never taking his eyes off her.

  The boys ran to the tree and held up the presents, talking and stumbling over each other in their excitement. Tommy held up the large box tied with red ribbon and read the tag. “Hey, this one is for you, Mom!” The boys whooped as they shook presents and arranged them under the tree.

  Lillian reached to kiss Drooms on the cheek. “You’ll join us for dinner?”

  Drooms nodded and ran his hand over her hair and rested it gently on her shoulder.

  Lillian smiled at their unspoken pact. “Boys, show Mr. Drooms the tree while I finish getting dinner ready.”

  The boys pulled Drooms over to the tree. Gabriel handed him the box of candy canes.

  “Here, Mr. Drooms, you can hang the high ones. And I’ll hang the low ones. Oops.” He began to eat the candy cane he just broke, and offered some to Drooms and Tommy.

  Lillian cast frequent glances at Drooms, just as he watched her moving about the kitchen.

  They both started when they heard Tommy’s panicked voice. “Oh, no! Mom!”

  A worried look crossed her face. “Now what?”

  “We forgot to get a star!”

  Gabriel became equally worried. “We have to have something at the top, Mommy. Otherwise it won’t really be finished.”

  Lillian stood with the silverware in her hands. “I completely forgot.”

  Both boys were alarmed at not having a completed tree. Gabriel looked from Tommy to Lillian to Drooms, waiting for someone to solve the problem. He then hit on an idea. “Can we borrow your star, Mr. Drooms?”

  Drooms was about to explain that he didn’t have any decorations, when he suddenly remembered the boxes of old family things his sister Kate had sent years ago. He had completely forgotten about them. He was sure there were some Christmas decorations in them.

  “Boys, Mr. Drooms doesn’t have anything. We’ll just have to do without one this year.”

  “I can’t say for sure,” said Drooms, “but I think I might have something – packed away.”

  Lillian stood in amazement. “Really?”

  “I think so.” He turned to the boys. “Shall we go and see if I’m right? We might have to dig through a few boxes.”

  Tommy raised his eyebrows. “Can we Mom?” Gabriel had already run to the door and was jumping up and down.

  “Yes. Go and help Mr. Drooms,” said Lillian.

  The boys ran ahead. “Hurry, Mr. Drooms!”

  He laughed at their excitement, and hoped he was correct in his recollection. It was so long since he had thought about those boxes.

  He opened the door to his apartment and went to the inner room. The boys looked up at him as he hesitated a moment, his hand on the doorknob. Then he opened it and switched on the light. It was just a dark closet full of old stuff that needed cleaning out. Nothing more. He shifted the old files and dusty boxes around, and then lifted a box from the top shelf.

  “It’s somewhere in here. In one of these large boxes, I think. Here, Tommy. You start on this one.” He set down a box outside the room for Tommy to search through, and then took down another box, and he and Gabriel began rummaging through it.

  Gabriel identified the items he pulled out. “Letters. Photos. Papers.”

  Tommy soon cried out in surprise. “Hey! Look! I think I found it!” He pulled out a beautiful, intricate silver star.

  Drooms smiled and nodded at his find.

  “Wait till Mom sees this!” Tommy ran off, yelling, “Mom! I found it!”

  In the same box where Tommy found the star, Drooms noticed a box of old glass ornaments. He recognized them all – St. Nicholas holding a tree, the little houses and churches, the shiny trumpets and glittering drums. He carefully lifted the box and brought it to Gabriel.

  Just inside the inner room, Gabriel was looking at a tiny old photograph of a mischievous looking boy who was smiling, with a scarf around his neck.

  “Hey,” said Gabriel. “Who’s this?”

  Drooms took the photograph and brushed off the dust. He smiled as he beheld the tiny photo.

  “That’s me,” he said softly. “When I was a boy.”

  Gabriel saw the box of ornaments and gasped when he spotted the red Santa holding a Christmas tree. “I can’t believe it! Just like my ornament. Can I show Mommy?”

  Drooms laughed. “Yes. Let’s hang them all on the tree.”

  Gabriel ran back to his apartment, crying, “Mommy! Look! You won’t believe what I found! My Santa ornament!”

  Drooms looked again at the photo that had been taken just a few weeks before the accident. He saw the young face with the impish smile, the hope and happiness in the eyes – and he was grateful to know that something of that younger self dwelled in him still.

  He placed the photo back in the box and closed the door. And with some of that little-boy lightness back in his step, he returned to Lillian, and to life.

  About the Author

  Linda Mahkovec writes about the search for beauty and meaning, and the awe and delight on finding it. Most of her stories are set in the places she has lived and loved: small town Illinois, the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, and New York City. She has a PhD in English, specializing in Victorian Literature.

  If you would like to learn more about Linda visit her at her website. You can reach her on Facebook or Twitter.