Shepherds notes:
When the kids are done with their gifts, it's on to the adults. The very youngest one, Bhavans girlfriend Beate Curious, gets the honour of going first, but from there the order is not by age, but appears to be a little more random..
Beate claps with joy as her gift reveals a guitar. Now she won't have to constantly borrow Bhavans guitar to learn how to play. ;)
"I went window shopping the other day, and I saw the most beatiful childrens shoes!" Sofia says all of a sudden.. "Beate, we should go shopping together one of these days. I heard you and Bhavan have been having some fun, if you know what I mean..."
Beate froze in embarrassment. "Did everyone know about it already? It was a heat of the moment thing, noone was supposed to find out! Why can't Sofia just keep her mouth shut, and why is she always so unstable? She goes from hating children and everything to do with them, only for the very next second talking about shopping for kids shoes and clothing! I cannot at all understand what Palash finds in her, because I don't understand or even like her at all!"
Deepak hadn't heard about what Beate and Bhavan did in his bed while he was at the hospital, but he understood, of course, that what Sofia said was embarrassing to Beate...
Deepak: Now now, I think it's time to move on! Gaute, you may open yours..
Gaute: With pleasure! Now lets see what this could be...
Gaute opened his present, to reveal a painted picture of a father and son that had gone fishing. Right next to getting an actual fishing pole, this was the perfect gift for him. ;)
Then it was Bhavans turn. He got a simple bedside lamp from his girlfried, but was more than happy anyway. Of course, it was a most useful gift as the last one that stood on his side of the bed somehow fell to the floor and broke in a thousand pieces.. someones foot was being a little clumsy when uh... when.. well, I wouldn't know what one can do to tip over a bedside lamp with ones foot, but... uhmm... let's move on, shall we... ;)
Udisha went on next to open her gift. She was happy about her gift, and told everyone what she got, but unfortunately I didn't catch it, because it drowned in the screams of Ole Christian that was in need of attention..
Same thing happened with Sofia, she happily revealed the contents of her gift, but I'm not sure if anyone at all caught what it was, as Ole Christians screams still overdubbed almost every other sound in the room..
Bodil: Can't someone make that baby just shut up! I can't tell what's going on! This christmas really, really sucks!
I wish so too, but everyone has to finish their action of opening presents before anyone can attend to the toddlers needs... well, since it's christmas, maybe I can be of help... I see the boy is hungry.. and with a magic swipe, the shepherd made sure the boy was fed and it could once again be a silent night...
Not straight away, but after a while, as the boy didn't immediately realize what happened, so he was still making noise when it was Dudleifs turn to open his present.. However, the boy kept silent just in time to reveal that Udisha had bought Dudleif a small mermaid statue. The mermaid being another important symbol of the town of Bewickton, as there is also a larger statue of one, "The Sirens Call", located at the Bewickton Esplanade. You can sort of see there is a painting of it by Deepak, hanging on the wall behind Dudleif and next to the couch where Leya is sitting.
There were still presents left to be opened, when Sofia decided it was enough wailing and left the party. "Thank you for inviting me, I had fun" she said briefly, before putting on her outerwear ready to brave the chilly winter rain outside and go back home.
Leya was next up to open her present, and she got another guitar. She was happy about it, as it meant she had a spare one in case the other one should break. ;)
Then it was Nityas turn. She opened her gift to happily reveal a guitar as well. Such is it when you're from a creative and very musical family. Beate made sure to watch her closely. "Nitya must have been gossiping", she thought. It was Nitya that first walked in on Beate and Bhavan after what they did, with Beate still in her underwear...
And last, but definately not least, it was finally the elders turn, as the host of the party, Laranya, went over to open her gift. She got an extra guitar, too, so music was guaranteed to fill this household from all possible corners.. Why they haven't started a family band already, you can ask.. ;) Probably because they're all guitar players and none of them play drums, bass or the piano...
Beate found it best to get dressed and leave before Deepak went over to open his present. She had spent enough time in this house for the night, she thought, and the safest thing was probably to get back home before the topic was brought up again.. or before she got the temptation to repeat the mistake...
Deepak opened his gift to reveal an easel, another perfect gift that gave a lot of happiness, even though there was almost an easel in every room of the house already.. but if painting is your life, you can never have to many easels, I suppose..
. Bhavan noticed his girlfriend had left, and decided to follow suit, and now.. everyone had opened their gifts, but there was still one more gift waiting besides the tree..
Leya: Bodil.. go check by the tree, I think there is still one more gift there for you..
Bodil: Another one.. for me, mom?
Leya: Yes, sweetheart.. We got another one for you. We kind of expected you to get coal, after all, since Sofia was invited..
Bodil: I knew it...
Bodil eagerly opens her gift to peak inside, but closes it again quickly and with another frown, before throwing the box on the floor without opening it properly..
Bodil: I hate this christmas! I hate it, hate it, hate it! First I got only coal, and then a stupid rainbow lanp! What am I supposed to do with a rainbow lamp! It's useless! Useless, useless, useless and childish! I don't want a rainbow lamp! I hate that rainbow lamp, and I HATE this christmas!
Gaute: I don't see whats so wrong about this rainbow lamp...
Shepherds notes:
Poor Bodil didn't get anything of what she wanted on this most miserable christmas evening, so she sat down, alone, to watch whatever was left of another rerun of an old mediocre christmas movie and feeling sorry for herself.. She had looked forward to this day so much, since mid-November already, but all her expectations, excitement and joy was all but gone, just like the winter snow outside.. No christmas spirits, no joy, nothing there at all.. she thought she might as well just end up like the grinch and spend the rest of her life living alone in a cave in the mountains.. Not that she really cared anymore, but she couldn't even hear what they said on the movie, because Ole Christian was crying again and stinking up the place.. what a rotten christmas eve this turned out to be..
..and everyone else just seemed to go about their business, not giving her an ounce of attention or understanding. Nitya had finally asked Gaute for a slow dance and Laranya had started to clean up after the party.. so this was it then? Was this how the night was going to end?
"Dear Santa, Vishnu, or whoever is out there watching... why is my family this lame? Why do they always talk for hours and hours about their paintings and their music? Why didn't I get what I wanted for christmas? I did my best to be good all year, I really did.. so what did I do wrong to deserve this? Please tell me... tell my why.."
Leya and Deepak had sat down next to Bodil, and they did notice she wasn't feeling to good. They weren't deliberately ignoring her, even though she felt they did, and the giving her coal thing.. it wasn't their idea to put it that way.. That was just to cruel they, thought. Who gives coal to a child on christmas eve? What's next – a pile of ashes, maybe? No, that's not how it should work, they both agreed...
Deepak: Listen, Bodil... I'm sorry it didn't go the way you had hoped with the presents and all this evening, but..
Deepak:... earlier just before we were about to eat, I'm pretty sure I heard something from the backyard..
Bodil: What, grandpa? What do you mean?
Deepak: I'm not sure, but it sounded like.. I don't know, someone stomping their hooves like reindeer, and I'm pretty sure I heard laughter and the door to our bath-house open and close..
Bodil: Really, grandpa? You know I don't believe in Santa anymore....
Deepak: Well, why don't we.. you, me and mom, go to the bathhouse to check it out..
Bodil: Why the bathhouse, grandpa? I'm not going to take a bath now, it's almost bedtime...
Deepak: Well I think we should go an check it out.. someone might just have left something for you there..
Bodil: Ok, I'll join you.. but why is it in the bathhouse.. why couldn't I just get it straight away?
Deepak: Just come along now, and you'll see...
"Grownups... this is so stupid... why can't I just go to bed and have this day be over?"
..and so, begrudgingly, Bodil followed them to the bathhouse in the backyard. Leya had, of course, spoken to Deepak about it beforehand, so she knew a surprise was waiting in there, but Deepak had stil kept his cards closed, so she didn't know excactly what it was. Maybe it was a cooking oven for kids..? It would have been a nice gift, sure, even though Bodil already owned one. Deepak was on his way to the bathhouse too, but struggled to walk as fast as the others. The doctors had decided that he would have no trouble, or atleast not to much trouble, going back home, but walking down the stairs again with a cane for the first time was still a little intimidating.. Landing on the moon is only half the job. Unless your plan is to build a base there, you have to find a way back too..
Leya gasped as she opened the door. Wow, how did he.. get that home and back in here all by himself? No, of course, that couldn't be.. Laranya must have helped him carry it, or maybe it was the neighbours..?
By all divine powers, Leya was super exited to see it. It was a much bigger gift than she had expected – a near excact replica of the hospital, as a doll house, and with an ambulance too.
She clapped and cheered with joy from the gift on the floor. She was sure that this would be a perfect gift for Bodil and Orinder to play with. Now it just remains to see what Bodil will think of this.. she wasn't really expecting much after having been disappointed twice earlier, but hearing her mom being so cheerful from inside lifted her spirits a little bit. "If mom can be this excited.. there must be something great in there..."
"What is it mom? What's going on? What's in there?" she said while tiptoing on the stones leading to the door, trying not to get her feet wet from the soggy ground.
However, Bodils excitement wasn't on level with her moms as she entered through the door and saw the hospital doll house.. It was a better gift than that stupid rainbow lamp, and certainly much, much better than a sack of coal, but she was still a little disappointed... for the third time this evening, it was a little to much..
"Mom.. I thought it was a.. all I wanted for christmas.. was my own computer.. " she said with a low voice. "I.. the hospital is really nice, but... what will I say to grandpa? I don't want to disappoint him.."
This put Leya in a bit of a tricky spot. Least of all, she wanted to see her children disappointed like this, especially not on this one evening of the year.. She had to think of something to say fast, as Deepak was likely just around the corner.. Maybe this idea with the bathhouse wasn't so great after all..
"..I'm sorry, mom..." Bodil continued. "It has been really nice staying here at grandma and grandpas house.. and the food was really good.. I'm a big girl and I know gifts aren't all that important, but.."
"This is how you know you're getting old, isn't it.." Deepak interrupted as he came in through the door, unknowing about his grandchilds slight dissappointment with the hospital gift. "Well, now you've seen it, Bodil.. what do you think? Isn't it great?"
"Thanks grandpa! The dollhouse is really nice!" Bodil said, trying to cover up her feeling of dismay. "I'm sure we're gonna have lots of fun with this one." Bodil had given her grandpa a lot of thought since she heard the news about him going to the hospital, and she knew that he meant really well with this gift, even if it was a bit of a miss, so she thought, she couldn't really be disappointed or mad.
"Thanks grandpa. You're the best grandpa."
Leya still had regrets and felt a little guilty about the idea of hiding away the hospital doll house in the bathhouse, even though it wasn't really her idea to begin with. She accepted the idea in part because she was hoping to replicate one of the most joyous memories from her own childhood.. when she discovered that she had a creative talent too, like so many others in her family.. and she had wished to get her own easel for almost a year, and how she desperately wanted to learn painting.. She remember just how her own parents did it, back then.. saving the best gift for last.. She had seen the same in her daughter, a bud of talent, and a strong desire for the tools needed to make it grow.. However, it wasn't necessarily painting that Bodil was the most interested in..
"You know, Bodil" Leya began softly "Me and Gaute.. we have really noticed what a good girl you've been all year... Always doing your homework and helping us around the house.. and we have noticed how much you like to read, so.."
"What..? What is it mom?" Bodils face lit up. Was she gonna get..? Did mom have another..? Another gift for her..? Was it gonna be..? No, it couldn't be.. could it?
"..merry christmas, Bodil!" Leya said, offering her a simple, but effective, phrase. ;)
"Oh.. mom.. Is that one for me!?"
"Yes, yes, sweetheart.. this ones all for you!"
"Yipee!! Mom, you're the greatest!" Bodil said as she received the gift in her hands and rapidly tore up the paper to reveal a cardboard box inside with the picture of a computer on it...
"Thanks alot mom!! This is excactly what I wanted! This gift means a lot to me!"
..and just like that, Bodil had forgotten all about the disappointments earlier this evening, and ran full speed with her new gift under her arm back into the house. She couldn't wait to show it to grandma and turn it on for the first time! What an awesome christmas this turned out to be afterall! ;)
"Look grandma! Look, I've got a computer, just like you!" Bodil shouted with joy as she turned to the corner from the stairs and into the dining room. "Now we can play games together!" Though the next thing on Bodils wishlist was to learn writing, she wasn't going to do that so soon this late on christmas eve. A computer can be used for more than just writing, and luckily, this one came with a few games already pre-installed, so Bodil was quick to set up a game with her grandma, racing her to the finish line (and winning, of course. ;))
While all this was going on, Palash and Dudleif, along with Ole Christian, had stuck it out at the party all the way to the very end and then some, before eventually deciding to call it a night, but not without Palash playing a small tune on the front porch before they finally could leave. ;) After finishing their race, Laranaya and Bodil followed them outside to wish them a continued merry christmas and good night, as they went on their way back to each their home. Palash hoped to himself that Sofia would be asleep by now, so that he wouldn't have to deal with whatever mood she could be in when he came home...
This had been a long, long day, and everyone was ready for bed. Since it was so late, Laranya had offered everyone to sleep over until next morning, instead of going back to the hotel. Gaute, already asleep, picked the shortest straw, and had to share his room with Orinder, whereas Leya went back to sleep in her old bedroom..
You can tell it's hers, because of the purple drawer next to the bed. ;)
Bodil wanted to sleep in grandpa and grandmas bed, and so had asked Deepak to read her a bedtime story about once upon a time when all the elves in Santas workshop had gone missing, and Rudolph the red nosed reindeer went on to save christmas for everyone...
Deepak, being a true family man, was really happy about how this day had turned out. He got everything he wanted this christmas. Leaving the hospital and spending a perfect day with those he loved the most – what more can a man want?
With this in mind and heart, it didn't matter much to him that Bodil now occupied his side of the bed, and he had to make do with sleeping in the bunk bed. It was more than worth it, if it could make a grandchild happy. And so, everyone went to sleep, feeling good and merry on this one magic night of the year... Good night.. ;)
~~~~~~~~~~~~
And of course, since all the family was gathered for this event, somewhere in between dinner and opening the gifts, to Bodils dismay... they made sure to seize the opportunity to get a family picture. ;)
Without name tags.
With name tags.
And with this, the Chitrakaar family (and the Narrator) wishes everyone a merry christmas.. and a happy new year! ;)
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