Free Sammy's Christmas List by Lillianna Blake Page A

give back this season?”  
    As I read the questions out loud, I smiled. “Why yes, yes I am.”
    The website described a one-night event during which needy children would receive gifts to ensure that they had a wonderful Christmas. Just the thought of it warmed my heart. What better way to remind myself of the true meaning of the holidays than to see joy in the eyes of a child?
    As a child, I’d never gone a Christmas without something spectacular under the tree. I was eager to return the favor. I signed up and was set for orientation the next evening.
    With so much under my belt for the holidays, I felt inspired to start on some resolutions for the New Year. While tapping away on my keyboard to create my list I transitioned from a sensation of failure to a sensation of promise. I would accomplish all the things I wanted to before the New Year and have a head start on what came next.
    Since my mother was away on a cruise for the holidays and all of my friends had plans there was no reason for me not to try a brand new style of food for Christmas dinner. I decided to order Vietnamese food for dinner on Christmas day. I called a few restaurants and found one that was open and willing to deliver on Christmas. I asked them to put together whatever dishes they would recommend. Once the food was taken care of I was ready to head down to the library to sign up for Secret Santa.

Chapter 2

    I stepped out the door and into wonderland, or at least that’s what it seemed like. Snow crunched under my boots. Christmas music drifted out of nearby shops, and the streetlights were decorated with garlands and poinsettias. It was a beautiful sight.
    The library was nearby and the temperature wasn’t unbearably cold, so I decided to get a little exercise by walking. As I walked I smiled and waved to the people I passed on the sidewalk. Some smiled back. Most just blew frozen air at me and hurried past. I ignored the grumpy people—they just weren’t in the Christmas spirit. I kicked the snow off my boots at the entrance of the library and stepped inside.  
    The library had been transformed. There were blue sparkly snowflakes that hung from every ceiling tile. As I walked further into the library I noticed that the walls were plastered with bright green and red foil paper. On the paper were pictures of different people dressed up for Christmas. I smiled at the sight. It was nice to get out of my apartment and see how everyone prepared for the holiday.
    As Max was away, and my mother also, I didn’t expect much festivity from the holidays. But now that I’d be participating in it, I was looking forward to it.
    A folding table sat off to the side from the main desk. Colorful presents created towers on the table. A sign hung from the front of the table that indicated it was the place to sign up for Secret Santa. Behind the table sat a man in a full Santa costume. Even though I was aware that he was a man dressed up in an outfit, I still experienced a little intimidation as I walked up to him.
    I recalled being a young girl on the knee of a mall Santa. I’d confided that I wanted a Barbie swimming pool. He told me that it was a waste of money and just to put my Barbie dolls in a pot of water and call it a pool. I took his advice and made it just a little better by using the stove to turn it into a Jacuzzi. I blamed Santa for melting all my Barbie dolls that year, much to the confusion of my mother.
    Santa smiled at me and pushed a clipboard my way. “Fill this out if you want to sign up.”  
    “Thanks.” As I began to peruse the document I had to sign, I overheard a conversation among a few people nearby.  
    “Last year Vincent had the best Secret Santa idea. He took real fur and crafted it into a reindeer and then surrounded it with actual moss that he saved from the fall. Then he took two spindled pieces of wood and used them to prop the reindeer’s front legs up so it would look like he was just about to take off.”