we left brooklyn in the cold and the dark. christmas eve. 5am. the sort of dark that hurts to look into. we showed up at bethlehem with the sun, kept driving, the sun always just a little bit behind. we crossed the mississipi in a rainstorm that glowed in the beams of light sliding back and forth over the face of the arch. there was a burrito microwaved in the only gas station open at ten pm christmas eve and a wad of ham wrapped in some sort of sponge and a little cheese spread. and then another dark morning, more night than is reasonable. tiny flecks of snow getting fatter and angrier and faster. 6:30 was a strip of white road and then nothing beyond it at all.
we arrived a little before 10 and the nephew who opened the door opened his eyes so wide i thought they'd roll right out of his head. he was not expecting us. the sweetie had spent the better part of this twentysomething hour drive planning different ways to surprise the family. most of them centered aroudn this sleepy child opening the door. watching a small child with a secret is a pretty good reward for driving halfway across the country. his mom had managed to keep the secret for three days but time is a much more complicated thing for younger folks and the two or so minutes he waited for his mom to get back downstairs so he could go and be dramatic and share his new secret were very long minutes. but his mom went downstairs to the tree and the family and the sparkling lights and packages. the child went down next, announced that he had a surprise, opened the door to let us walk in. we said surprise and merry christmas and a whole bunch of people's eyes went wide and soft. it was a beautiful moment. exactly what we'd planned. we'd driven halfway across the country to see family, surprised them with this christmas morning visit right in the middle of the wrapping paper and bows and they were happy to see us, just like we'd hoped. and when the small brown dog, whose legs were too short to let him walk through the snow to the house, was finally set down on the carpet he squatted, right there in front of the tree, in the midst of all this reunioning and hugging and wet eyes. and he delivered a package he'd been carrying since 5am. tidings indeed.
more holiday news and photos soon. right now we're cramming a whole year of visiting into three or four days.
we arrived a little before 10 and the nephew who opened the door opened his eyes so wide i thought they'd roll right out of his head. he was not expecting us. the sweetie had spent the better part of this twentysomething hour drive planning different ways to surprise the family. most of them centered aroudn this sleepy child opening the door. watching a small child with a secret is a pretty good reward for driving halfway across the country. his mom had managed to keep the secret for three days but time is a much more complicated thing for younger folks and the two or so minutes he waited for his mom to get back downstairs so he could go and be dramatic and share his new secret were very long minutes. but his mom went downstairs to the tree and the family and the sparkling lights and packages. the child went down next, announced that he had a surprise, opened the door to let us walk in. we said surprise and merry christmas and a whole bunch of people's eyes went wide and soft. it was a beautiful moment. exactly what we'd planned. we'd driven halfway across the country to see family, surprised them with this christmas morning visit right in the middle of the wrapping paper and bows and they were happy to see us, just like we'd hoped. and when the small brown dog, whose legs were too short to let him walk through the snow to the house, was finally set down on the carpet he squatted, right there in front of the tree, in the midst of all this reunioning and hugging and wet eyes. and he delivered a package he'd been carrying since 5am. tidings indeed.
more holiday news and photos soon. right now we're cramming a whole year of visiting into three or four days.
2 comments:
You saved Christmas!!!
Why did Christmas need to be saved?
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