A Christmas to Remember
written by: P.A. O’Neil
It started as a Christmas like all the others Pammie had remembered in her short life, the difference being it was the first time being celebrated in their new house. Pammie’s mom was so proud of her large dining room, she volunteered to host the whole family for Thanksgiving Dinner and did so again for Christmas. There was Nana and Tata, Nina Pamela (Pammie’s namesake) and Nino Jorge, as well as her own family of Mama, Papa, and her older brother David, all gathered around the large dining room table Mama had ordered just for occasions such as these.
Pammie was seven years old. Mama, and Nina had taken her with them for the Black Friday Sale shopping. Everyone else had stayed home to watch football with Nana remaining home to maintain the snack table. It must’ve been here Santa got the idea to provide her with the doll she found under the Christmas tree the following month.
Nina waited with Pammie in the long line to see Santa at the department store. Several times she asked, “Where’s Mama?”
Nina always patted her on the head and assured her, “Mama, had gone to buy Papa’s present and would be back in time for her visit with Santa.” True to her word, Mama, was there to greet Pammie as she jumped off Santa’s lap to receive a candy cane from one of his helpers.
“Mama, did you see me talking to Santa?”
“Yes, mija, I did. Did you tell him what you wanted for Christmas?”
“Well, not exactly—I really don’t know what I want.”
Mama and Nina exchanged perplexed glances, but Nina’s curiosity prevailed. “What did you tell him?”
Pammie unwrapped the cellophane of her candy cane. “We talked about some of the dolls I’d seen today while we were shopping.” She popped the crook of bare candy in her mouth.
“Oh,” Nina pressed, “and what types of dolls were those?”
Pammie pulled the cane from her mouth. “You know, the kind that looks like a little girl, not like a baby,” popping the candy back in her mouth.
“Oh, I see, yes,” said Nina. She and Mama exchanged nods, but Pammie didn’t notice, she was licking her fingers where sugary saliva had run down the side of the candy.
Christmas morning arrived and true to his word, Santa had provided a bounty of gifts for her and David. Besides the mandatory pajamas from Nana and Tata, the board game from Nina and Nino, there was also a red wool coat from her other grandparents who lived in another state. Papa distributed the presents from under the tree until there were only two packages left. One for Pammie and one for David.
David’s present was large and square. Nino pulled out his pocket knife to help him open the sealed cardboard box. Carefully, they removed a small television, the kind with a 12” screen and pull-out swivel antenna. David was several years older than his sister and was quite pleased with his “grown-up” gift. After the gift-giving was over and the clean-up finished, he disappeared to his room to make a place for his new black-and-white television.
Pammie’s present was the last to be presented. It was large and oblong, and when the paper was removed, you could see it was a doll through the window in the front. Papa helped remove the doll, gently handing it to his daughter. “It says her name is, Brenda, on the box, but I’m sure you can name her anything you want.”
Mama and Nina looked on with tight-lipped grins and Pammie examined the doll. She had short, red hair of stiff shiny curls. Her dress was dotted-Swiss fabric, over a petticoat of net. On her feet were ankle socks and white plastic T-strap style shoes, which can easily slip off. The most interesting thing about this doll, was that she had a velveteen coat of red, which very much matched the coat she had received from her grandparents.
“Look, mija, according to the box, Brenda, can sit or stand,” Papa offered.
“She’s quite beautiful,” commented Mama, as Pammie cradled her in her arms, “and her eyes close when she lays down.”
“Yes, Mama, she’s beautiful. Thank you, Santa!”
The family nodded, pleased she was happy with her special gift.
Christmas dinner had long since been cleared away and the second round of eating had begun. Some were served apple pie and ice cream, while others made another meal out of left-over tamales from Christmas Eve along with mashed potatoes, gravy, and turkey from dinner itself. After having his second piece of pie, David left to his room to enjoy his new television in private.
The adults had adjourned to the living room to watch the Christmas specials on the color television. Pammie didn’t understand most of the jokes from the comedians, but she liked the music. When the movie White Christmas came on, Pammie became bored with the evening’s events. She liked the movie enough, but as far as she could remember, they had always watched this movie on Christmas night, and she was tired with the re-run.
The grown-ups had opened a bottle of something with lots of bubbles and were singing along with the movie. They never noticed when she left the room. Walking down the hall, she heard a noise coming from David’s room. She opened the door. “Can I come in?”
David must’ve been in a good mood because he said, “Suit, yourself, just close the door behind you.”
The room was darkened, the only light coming from the television perched on the corner of his dresser. David was draped across his bed, his head propped upon pillows. Pammie sat on the foot-end, her doll still cradled in her arms. The television was just starting the showing of some program called The Outer Limits. She didn’t quite know what it was about, but she knew it was something Mama had told her she wasn’t old enough to watch.
“Does, Mama, know you’re watching this?”
“Doesn’t matter. I have my own television now; I can watch what I want. Sit quiet or leave.”
She sat there watching as the story played out for an audience of two. She understood it was about a man and a woman who seemed lost. They came to a cabin to get out of a storm, but they were afraid. “This is silly,” she thought, “why would they be afraid of the rain.” But the storm on the television became more intense, with wind blowing tumbleweeds so hard, they hit the front of the cabin, like the way little rocks would fly up at her when her brother would come to a sliding stop on his bicycle, just missing her by a foot or two.
Pammie was enthralled by the show. She clutched her doll to her breast, not saying a word, her eyes barely blinking. The woman on the show started to panic, she told the man she had to get out of the cabin. Somehow, Pammie knew it wasn’t a good idea. When the woman opened the door, she was met with a group of frogs, hundreds, maybe thousands, all jumping at her and the cabin. There was a scream, but Pammie didn’t know if it came from the woman on television or herself.
She jumped, almost sliding off the bed, shielding her eyes with her doll. It was then, Mama, opened the door. “Here is where you’ve gotten young lady. C’mon, it’s time for you to go to bed. David, only another half-hour for you then bed.”
Mama took her to her room, all the while humming “Sisters” while helping her change into her nightgown. She tucked her daughter in tight, placing the new doll in her arms, and kissed her goodnight.
Pammie lay in the dark of her familiar bedroom, eyes wide as she waited for something to happen, eventually, the need for sleep took over and she closed her eyes. Sleep was pleasant enough until she started to dream. There were the lights of the Christmas tree, her brother riding his bike, a strange cabin with nobody but Pammie in it. She knew she didn’t belong there, so she turned to leave, but when she opened the door, thousands of frogs jumped at her, her face, her body, her arms, her hair!
“Boom!”
Pammie sat up in bed, the room was still dark, and someone was screaming, only this time she knew it was her. Mama came rushing in, turning on the light. “Mija, what happened? We heard a noise?”
“The frogs, Mama, the frogs were jumping at me.”
Mama sat on the bed, hugging her while stroking her hair. “Sh-sh-sh, it was only a dream.” She tucked her back into bed. “Where’s your new doll?”
They found the doll on the floor across the room where it had landed when Pammie launched it across the room in her effort to get away from the frogs. Mama picked it up, putting it on the corner of the dresser, where it remained until months later when she boxed up outgrown clothing for charity.
No one has ever talked about the events of that night, nor asked why the doll was no longer wanted. Next Christmas, when she sat on Santa’s lap, Pammie, asked for an art kit.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
“A Christmas to Remember” is one of the stories in P.A. O’Neil book, Witness Testimony and Other Tales.
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