Chapter 7.11 - December 2022: Part XI – What day is this?

The Piano Guys – What child is this?

What morning is this, where every child is laid to rest
In their cribs and beds they're sleeping
While angels sing with anthems sweet
And the shepherds watch are keeping...

This, this is christmas morning
That shepherds guard and angels sing
Haste, haste to get out of bed
And see, what hangs there on the wall...

So turn your gaze, child, and look the other way
It might not be incense, gold, and myrrh
Instead a christmas stocking, brought to you for this day...

Bodils notes:

Christmas stockings! Looks like "Santa" came for me after all! I hope there's a computer inside! I have been wanting my own computer all year! Ever since we had to read books at school I have been wanting to learn writing too!



Hmm, this can't be a computer. It's much to soft.. maybe it's candy? A big bag of marshmallows? Or a scarf and a pair of gloves?



Aww, it's a teddy bear! He's very red, like a strawberry!



"How are you today Mr. Strawberry? Would you like to have a tea party?"
"Yes, yes, Queen Bodil. I would really love a tea party! Strawberry tea is my favorite! With tons of sugar!"
"Of course it is, Mr. Strawberry!"



"Thanks, Santa..."



"..the teddy bear was really nice, but I would still like to have that computer so I can learn how to write books..."
Narrators Shepherds notes:



After a while, her mom and step-dad also woke from their slumber, and everyone (except one that was still asleep) gathered in the hotels kitchen area to have breakfast.. but not without bowing down to the Queen herself, and thanking her for the meal that she had so gracefully bestowed upon them. ;)


..and finally, the last born of this family also woke up. This would be Orinders second christmas, and his first as a toddler. He knew he wasn't at home, that this wasn't his usual crib, and that something was different, but he still didn't have much of a concept of what was going on and why. Santa to him was still a strange and scary man, the moon an unknown far away object and mommys arms the safest place on the planet.



"Do you know what day it is today, Orinder?"
"Da!" "It's christmas! The day where everyone is happy, celebrates and spends time together with family and friends!"
"Da!"



"It's the day where everyone gives gifts to each other, and look... maybe someone has a gift for you as well! Do you want to open it and see what it is?"
"Da!"
And so Leya took the stocking from the wall and held it in front of him while slowly pulling out it's contents revealing a little turqoise knitted plush teddy bear.
"Oh! Look! It's a .. moon boy!" she said while turning it around to face him.
"Hi, there little boy" she said in a play pretend voice. "I'm a little teddy boy that came all the way from the moon!"
Orinder looked at the moon boy with a slightly skeptical face and tilted his head as if he wanted to see if there was something more behind it. Anything new had to be examined carefully to determine if it was an object that could be trusted, before doing any kind of interaction with it.
"I like to play, it's very fun. Do you want to play?" Leya said with the voice of a little toy from a place far, far away.
Orinder took one more look at it, before giving his sign of approval to the strange new toy by stretching out his arms and exclaiming a short "Da!".



"Oh, my little darling... You be a good boy and play with your new friend for a while, and mommy, daddy and sister are gonna get ready to visit grandma and grandpa! Today is going to be a big day..."



**********



Just as fast as the old year appear to have passed, Bodil ran for the door when they came to grandmas house. Wow, their house was so nicely decorated with christmas lights and boughs of holly – so much nicer than yesterday! They must have gotten help from the neighbours – or how did they do that? ;)


"Merry christmas, grandpa!"
"Merry christmas Bodil! You came here early – we just got out of bed!"
"Yes, grandpa! Of course I did, it's christmas!"
And christmas morning is no excuse to share a bit of gossip about things from earlier this year...


"Psst! Hey, grandpa! Last time we visited my aunt Udisha, she went into the bedroom and made noises with my uncle! Hihihi, I know what they did in there! Mom was so embarrassed!"
"Oh? Did she really..? Maybe I'll have a word with her..."
"No no! You must not tell her I said that!"



Laranya: I'll call Palash and give him a reminder that the christmas party starts at 15.. just in case he should forget..
Deepak: Good idea.. he's the only one I know that would forget about his own birthday party – that he arranged! And tell him to put on something nice for a change...
Laranya: Shh, not so loud.. he could hear you!
Nitya: I'll be occupying the kitchen for a while. I'll make christmas lunch for everyone!

**********



While everyone was inside eating lunch and getting dressed and ready for the christmas party to start, a shift in the weather occured outside.. Yesterdays cold temperatures and snowfall had to give way for milder winds and rain, but such was winter on the islands just off the Simbrian west coast.



The elders in town would tell you, this wasn't a new phenomena. Some would even say that one christmas it rained so bad they had to use row boats to get around, but maybe we should take that last one with a grain of salt...



It looks like Laranyas reminder to Palash had the desired effect, as he and Sofia were the first guests to come over and ring the doorbell. They even beat the pizza delivery girl by a few minutes. ;)



Nitya went downstairs to answer the door for the pizza delivery while Dudleif and Udisha came through the door with their two sons Nishit (7 years) and Ole Christian (3 years). They thought it best not to bring their daughter Madhunisha (9 months) along, and so they had hired a baby sitter for her. As they gathered upstairs, Sofias face got a little pale as she held on to her stomach.
"Ooh, I hope there's a toilet a nearby..."

Bhavan: Is everything ok? We got a bathroom right behind you if you need it..



Well, Bhavan was friendly and guided Sofia to the bathroom and she did what she had to do, as more guests arrived and the pile of gifts grew larger. Here is Beate Curious, Bhavans girlfriend, contributing her part to the party. :P



Udisha followed Bhavan and Sofia into the bathroom to see if everything was alright, to find that they had shifted to discuss work. Both Bhavan and Sofia are employed at the fire station, and Sofia just happens to be his boss. ;) Sofia has always been very proud of her job at the fire station, and most of her hours go by there, either working out or maintaining the fire truck and overseeing that everything runs smoothly.. it's almost like she's trying to impress someone by following in their footsteps....
"Look, daddy? Do you see me now? Are you proud of me now, daddy? Daddy...?"



..and speaking of management, Laranya does her best to oversee all the guests, so she invites them to sit down for a meal before the highlight of the day, atleast for the kids, can take place.. It's a little tricky, as everyone goes around on their own accord, but during the next couple of hours everyone has sat down to eat atleast once, some twice... Christmas music fills the room, all the bellies are full and the kids are getting increasingly impatient. ;)



Someone might just be serving themselves twice with good reason, as Sofia was about to eat her first plate, she thought she felt something in her stomach.. something different from the feeling of constant hunger.. "Aww, mommys little one..." she said to herself feeling her stomach as she got up from her chair to change into her formal pregnancy wear...



Ever since she discovered she was pregnant, Sofia has had her fair share of mixed feelings and ups and downs.. and today is no different, because she quickly turns around as her husband walks by and loudly voices excactly what she feels..
"This is your fault! You did this to me!"
Christ, I was about to say, and this is what she says now, still a good six months away from actually delivering...



"Booo! Palash, listen to me! Why did you do this? Why are you putting me through this!? LISTEN TO ME!"
What can I say? I don't really know, but I admire Palashs ability to ignore his wifes shouting and focus on his meal.. This must often be the situation in their home, I imagine.. He probably knows this will pass in just a few minutes..

Laranyas notes:

My oh my, my sons got a handful... Now, as a woman, I can understand Sofia.. up until a certain point.. being pregnant sure has its ups and downs and moments of anxiety about the future, but.. I don't know, I think this is just a little to much.. I didn't love being pregnant all the time, I did not, but I was never like this..
    First time I was pregnant with Udisha was definately the worst and most anxiety ridden, but thanks to ample support from my husband and a little bit of professional counselling, I went through it alright.. By the second time around – when I was pregnant with Palash – I had already been through it all, so it went a lot easier. Of course, I still got sick every now and then and got back pains, but my anxiety was a lot less.. I think.. Sofia would definately benefit from.. talking to someone.. I don't know her that well, so I don't know what's the underlying issue here, but there's gotta be something.. I don't think this is normal behaviour, not at all.. and I would rather not see anyone act like this on my Christmas eve party, pregnant or not...



Deepak: Dibs on not doing the dishes!
Bodil: Me too! Grandma can do them! She is much better at it then any of us! Or maybe auntie Sofia can do it, since she's yelling so much!
Deepak: Haha, I agree!



Beate: Haha, yeah Sofia sure is a noisy one at times...
Sofia: (...) ..and kids toys! I don't want to see a single kids toy under that tree! If Palash wants to buy kids toys, it's gonna be with his money! He's not gonna buy them with... (...)
Udisha: Oh Brahma... here we go again...


Bodils notes:

This is what I hate the most about christmas eve.. why does everyone always take so long to finish eating.. just eating and eating and talking and talking for hours! It's soooo boring! I want to open the presents! When I grow up and have children, I'm not gonna be like this! I'm gonna say that everyone can open the presents FIRST, and then we'll eat! This is sooooo boring!



Laranya: Oh, don't say that Sofia, you know how much the kids love their presents and their toys.. and it looks like everyone is finished eating, so I think it's time we start to open them..



Shepherds notes:

Now you might have expected the kids to get up and cheer, but the most excited one is actually the second oldest. ;) (Laranya is the oldest). However, it's not really the presents that excite him the most. Deepak is a true family man, and being surrounded by this many family members, it doesn't get any better than that. Such a stark contrast to white boring hospital walls.. just be careful with that cane, you don't want to send anyone back there with a black eye or something. x_O

Opening the presents:





In the world of sims, toddlers are to young to open presents, so it all starts with the third youngest. Nishit, the first born son of Udisha and Dudleif gets to open the first present to reveal a teddy bear.



Finally, it's Bodils turn. She has been waiting all day for this, and most of all she hopes to find the latest Simbook Pro underneath the christmas paper so she can get to practice writing as soon as possible..



"What did you get? Is it a Simselangelo painting? I have always wanted a Simselangelo painting..." Nitya said with a bit of a hopeful wonder in her voice. "No..." Bodil replied with a frown. "It's a sack of coal".



Bodils notes:

This is already the worst christmas EVER! I waited this long and I have done my best to be good all year, and what do I get? Coal! Coal!? This is probably Sofias fault! I'm sure she was the one that brought the coal in a bag, because she said earlier she doesn't like kids toys! But she could have bought a computer! A computer isn't a toy, and it's also very useful! Not like coal! Coal is just trash and can't be used for anything! I want a computer, not coal! I hate this!

Shepherds notes:

What a lousy gift to give.. who could it be, that would do this to a child? And is that all Bodil will get for christmas this year? I don't know.. yet, but.. maybe we will find out in part two of this update, to be posted tomorrow right after this one.. ;)

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Chapter 7.10 - December 2022: Part X – Moon Landing

Sivert Høyem – Moon Landing

Laranyas notes:




I woke up early this morning, the clock must have been around 5, and I could have sworn for a second there I just felt Deepaks warmth next to me.. and heard the sound of his snore and that soft mumble he always did, but my honey bee wasn't there, and all I heard was the sound of his memorabilia watch ticking..

Out in the woods... tall pine tree woods...



I guess I wasn't quite awake as I made the bed.. and I.. I still don't know why I woke up so early.. I guess I was hoping for.. I slept with the bedroom door open, just in case.. as if.. as if he could be home with me, any moment..
..but of course I knew that.. he wouldn't be let out of the hospital in the middle of the night.. so there wasn't much to do but.. go back to sleep again..



~~~~
Narrators notes:




Upstairs Bodil was having a bit of a restless sleep in the bunk bed.. Back home at school, her friend Edny Sævik was sometimes given a bit of a hard time by the other kids as the news of her moms imprisonment spread around.. Bodil, even though she wanted to get along with everyone, just couldn't be a bystander to watch this happen to her friend...
Nityas notes:




I was a bit groggy this morning as I got out of bed, so I thought I should walk outside to get some fresh air..



Someone had left a plate with a half eaten burger outside. I looked around to make sure nobody was watching.. I was feeling hungry, so I thought I might as well just eat it, instead of letting it go to waste.. we throw away enough food as it is, and I just don't think that's sustainable...



..but then that strange thing happened again that sometimes happens.. I wanted to go inside to eat it, but my right foot got stuck in the parking bumper and I couldn't move.. It freaks me out a bit, because usually when this happens, I seem to get some kind of memory lapse, and if I'm out somewhere, I may even suddenly find myself at home confused and with no idea how I got there...It really makes me think sometimes, if our lives are just a dream?
I got that memory lapse again now, too, but atleast it got me loose from the car bumper, however somehow I also lost the hamburger...



I can't have eaten it, because I was still hungry, but eh.. I think I needed to play some tunes on my guitar now to calm me down, before I could dare try to eat something again.. Maybe I shouldn't try to eat old half eaten hamburgers lying around outside...



Bodils notes:




I felt good when I woke up, after having slept in the top bunk bed in grandmas house. I dreamt tonight that I was the strongest girl in school, and I could beat up everyone that was being mean and saying wrong things!



I thought grandma must already be awake, because I could hear some guitar playing. Grandma would always play the guitar, she said she had so much music in her. I'm not sure how you can have music in you. Music is something you make when you play on an instrument or sing, but maybe it's just one more of those things I will understand better when I get older.



There was nobody in the dining room, living room or kitchen and it sounded like the guitar playing came from outside, so I got dressed and walked downstairs to head out the door. From the stairs I could see my aunt Nitya playing through the window. So it wasn't grandma that was up. Maybe I should learn to play the guitar, too, but all the guitars are so big and I'm only a child. I wish we had guitars for children, I don't know why we can't have that. So many things they say I can't do and understand just because I'm a child! Sometimes I wish I wasn't a child.



Gautes notes:




My boy Orinder has an appetite, that's for sure. I'm sure he'll grow up to be a big strong man, just like his fath.. umm, well, you know what I mean. It's always a pleasure to feed the little rascal, and I never knew I would be such a proud parent.. well, I am proud of both of my sons, I really am, so I do make sure to send some money to Sunset Valley for my boy Robert, too.. I probably do owe Ranveig some for those years, and yeah.. part of me wishes she had told me I actually had a son there a bit earlier... I sometimes wonder how things would have turned out if she did..



I heard Robert is with the boy scouts now, and he's already doing great, going fishing and enjoying his life in the outdoors. A solid chip off the old block that one..

Leyas notes:




Gaute is a really good father for Orinder, and a good step-father for Bodil as well, and honestly.. I kind of wasn't expecting that given what I have heard about his, umm, past life and what I first learned about him when I came to town... Oh, well he's still got some of that spontaneous spirit in him, and that's another part of him that I love.. Somehow I got the best of both worlds, finally.

Deepaks notes:




Now, it's not that I'm ungrateful for all the doctors and nurses at the hospital have done for me – I mean, they literally saved my life – but, you know.. I'm getting tired of this, day in, day out, the same routines.. The nurses are sweet most of the time, and sure, it's nice to see that they can have a little fun on the job. I'm not at all opposed to that, but them cracking jokes about me being an astronaut.. I don't know, maybe today is just bad day, but that was the final straw for me...



"One small step for man" just didn't seem all that funny to me, and I knew it was time for me to get out of there. I didn't want to spend christmas at a hospital.. I did my best to walk as fast as I could away from them while distracting myself with thinking about the song I was working on before all this happened.. and as they continued to crack jokes, as much as it annoyed me, maybe now I had found a title for it...

For now I've had enough from you
I'm done and so are you
Go see what you can do
The universe is expanding

I'm going to make this
My own moon landing
I'm going to give this
The best that I've got

Moon Landing.

----
Narrators notes:



Back at the house Laranya was in the kitchen, busy preparing, well, lunch, since they had already slept for well into the day.. Right next to some smelly hamburgers that must have been more leftovers from yesterdays party..



At the hotel Gaute was done with his morning workout, Leya had picked up Orinder, and they were on their way back to her mothers house. Earlier she had tried to call her sister Udisha to hear if they could come over for a visit, but she was, as usual, busy working again..



Nitya, being the youngest adult of the family, and the one most concerned about the environment and the future state of their planet, was busy teaching Bodil about the importance of recycling when the taxi pulled up outside the house.



"If everyone contributes their part.. we can all save the planet together!"



Inside Laranya had finished cooking, and was about to call everyone in to eat just in time for Leya and Gaute to join them eating.



Gaute: It's always a pleasure to visit this house – I feel really welcome here. There's so much warmth – and food on the table!



Nitya: There's no better chef than my mama! She has always made sure everyone has had enough to eat – and then some!



Nitya: We just have to remember to save the leftovers! I would hate having to throw away food!



After everyone had eaten and their bellies were well and full (and the leftover food safely stored in the refridgerator) calm and tranquility and classical music from the stereo filled the house... and Gaute thought he'd make use of this moment to ask his wife for a slow dance. ;)



At the hospital Deepak was ready for take.. I mean, departure, but not without being something special from the hospital shop first...
Store clerk: Do you want me to wrap it for you?
Deepak: Yes.. yes, please.



"Christmas lights are up.. well, we could probably handle to pay a little more on our electricity bill.. It's only christmas once a year.. but after New Years these lights are going down..."



Leya: Dad..? You're home! We weren't expecting...
Deepak: I just couldn't take it anymore... And the doctors agreed, I had done more than enough progress to be able to care for myself while at home, so there was no need for me to stay there any longer...


Deepak: ..and they didn't really want to hold me there over christmas anyway, because you know.. it's christmas.. It's so good to be back home again..
Leya: It's good to see you home again too, dad...



Deepak: Now there's someone upstairs I have to see again..



Laranyas notes:



Woohoo yeah! My man was back from the hospital, and I was flushed with the most intense joy! I couldn't hold it in, and why should I? Now, christmas could come! I didn't really notice at first, that he came walking over with a cane, I was just to excited!



Of course, it is true, we aren't getting any younger, but just in that moment I felt as young as I haven't felt in years – and certainly not for the past few weeks! When we kissed again I was on top of the world, almost like floating in space!



I was in love again! Well, not that I ever really fell out of it, but you know.. My eyes couldn't do anything but follow him as he went into the kitchen to prepare himself a meal.



We spent the rest of the night watching an old christmas classic on tv, and I'm pretty sure I had a big smile on my face the whole time. Or, atleast until Gaute came with an inappropriate question I don't feel like repeating..



I don't think he meant any harm with it, but that was a reminder of what happened that I don't think any of us needed right now.. Now, Gaute is a good man, though sometimes he can be a little tactless... We all had that anxiety, and we all feared for the worst, and we were all relieved when it didn't go that way, but really.. come on..
Gautes notes:



Sometimes my mouth works a little faster than my brain, and things come out not quite like I intended.. We had a nice evening, but the mood got a little weird towards the end.. Deepak didn't really reply to my question...I just made a fool of myself in front of my parent-in-laws. Not the first time, and it probably won't be the last..



I could hear Laranya making a sarcastic remark about being bright as a llama as I watched Deepak walk off to go to bed... I was.. really surprised.. I was concerned he would fall over, but..I mean, he came here this evening on crutches and walked with a cane, and now he just went on his way, without any support, like nothing had happened.. ..well, that's recovery! Or maybe he just forgot he came here with a crutch, I don't really know, but it certainly left me impressed by the man!



Deepaks notes:

That Gaute! Oh, he's an interesting guy.. I think Laranya took his comment much worse than I did. We've all had these thoughts, I'm sure, and he just verbalized them. I know the man is good at heart, and I can see where his comment came from, so there was no reason for me to be offended. It was actually a bit of a relief to hear him say it, as it shows he's had a great deal of concern. Of course, it came out a bit wrong, but we all knew the meaning behind it. I'm pretty confident my daughter is in good hands with this man, and I have no worries at all.



Gautes notes:

I gave an apology to Laranya about my comment, I didn't mean for it to come out like it did. She didn't necessarily mean the llama thing either, as she explained, the past few weeks have been pretty hard, but now that Deepak was back home things were alright again.



I was still a little concerned though, how he seemed to forget using his cane and taking off like a rocket to go to bed. Laranya assured me, that was just his nature, stubborn as he was. When he had a goal in mind, he could really be unstoppable sometimes. Aiming for the stars was just his thing, she said. Yeah.. I can see that, and I'm probably not the right person to say this, but maybe it would benefit him to take it a little easy, atleast for a while....
Leyas notes:




Visiting my mom and the house I grew up in is always a pleasure and today doubly so, when we all got the surprise of dad returning from the hospital. Though it was getting late, and a certain aroma filled the air (Orinder needed his diaper changed...), so I figured it was time to retreat to the hotel for the night.. and prepare for tomorrow..




Dad and my sister had already gone to bed, so it was best not to disturb them, but I gave my mom a solid good hug before saying good night. I could hear Orinder crying as Gaute picked him, so it was definately bedtime for big and small...

Bodils notes:



I have done my homework and done my best to be a good girl all year... Dear Santa, it wasn't me starting those fights at school, I only did that to save my friend... so I hope Santa has got something special for me tomorrow! Well, I don't really believe in Santa anymore, I know it's just mom and dad and I'm just pretending... but I still love christmas! I love the snow, all the candy, the presents, the music, the food, and my grandma and grandpa... Grandpa came home from the hospital today, and he wasn't in the wheelchair anymore. I think he was really happy to be back home in his house again. I think the hospital must be a really boring place. I don't think anyone wants to celebrate christmas at a hospital, but if you are really sick, maybe you have to. I hope a Santa Claus comes to visit all the people at the hospital, too, especially the children. I'm happy I'm not sick and have to be at the hospital for christmas. Ok, good night.



Narrators notes:

..and so everyone went to sleep once more, dreaming dreams of Santa, hospitals, rockets and treadmills (or rocket fuel fueled treadmills perhaps...?)



and an orchestra playing their music...



..as a blue full moon hang silently in the december night sky...



..and perhaps Santa does exist, because isn't that.. the faint sound of jingle bells in the distance...?



..maybe...



...if you look closely, you'll see him...



..good night. ;)



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