Blind Wolf Holiday Special

I never celebrated the Winter Festival, I won't celebrate it now and I probably won't celebrate for what's left of my life.

Mostly because back there in Russia it's called Christmas, and even if I was in Russia I wouldn't celebrate because it's a religious festivity and me, my father and mother are all atheist.

Either way, we spend that time together as a family even if I am not related to them by blood.

They are also many family friends who come to visit us like Drago and his daughter Bianka, both of them musk deers. They are the closest thing I have to an uncle and sister.

And if you haven't met me before, Allow me introduce myself. My name is Aleksei, a white furred blind wolf and Kung Fu master.

You see, I've been an orphan all my life. I was never adopted, and I ran away from the orphanage at the ripe age of seven when I became the target of prejudice by the new guy in charge of the place. After that I was found by wandering a cave by Makari and Darya who took care of me and they treated like I was their child.    

Even if I was blind that never really bothered me.

I managed to get past my visual discapacity and they taught me many things, science, nature, art, engineering, agriculture, medicine, cooking, etc.

When I turned eighteen I wandered many places in Europe, Asia and a little bit of Africa, apprenticing myself under many other teachers. I learned things from carpentry to craftsmanship, and many of them in record time just ask my mother and father, they will say I was the best student they ever had.

But I never stuck around long enough for any winter holiday. Winters in many places can be hard on people, so the first thing they gotta do is look for themselves and their families, and then they can look to everyone else. Unfortunately during winter, none of the craftsmen take on apprentices, business is never really for carpenters or stoneworks during this season.

When I traveled from place to place I would always camped and lived from nature, my fur is thick and that is why I endure the low temperature. Looking for work in winter is a real challenge, like I said before businesses don't run as well in winter. Carpenters and stoneworks can build but snow makes it very difficult. Lose something in the snow; it's gone till spring. Blacksmiths also have hard time on winter. The weather doesn't bother them so much as the lack of materials they have. Ore and kindling aren't easy to come across during winter. 

The only businesses that do well are the restaurants. But they usually do well all year around. Trying to get them to give a job takes a lot patience and convincing because I am blind, specially with the high class restaurants, you know the ones that pays unbelievably well, they always help at this time of year. And I could use the extra cash so it works out for everyone.

Thats how its always been for me... every year... for the past six years of my life.

Not this time.

This time I have place to call my home besides the one I got back there in Siberia, and now I have friends to spend this holidays with.

But this year wasn't exactly how I expected it was gonna be.

Once winter came around, things changed slightly at the Jade Palace. We still had our training schedule, only it didn't last as long as it would in the warmer seasons, (not in my case anyway) after that we would all go off and do what we wanted. These days "do what we wanted" can be loosely translated as "try to stay warm" at least that's what I assume from observing Viper, Monkey, Mantis, Crane and Tigress.

Down in the village, where I am currently at right now, Mr. Ping needs help in his shop during this time. At least once a day, everyone in the village comes to his shop for a hot bowl of noodle soup, and in this cold weather who could blame them? So I worked out a deal with my Kung Fu master, Shifu. I spend the mornings helping out Mr. Ping, and earning a few coins in the process, and spend the afternoon until dinner in the training hall. It took some convincing but when I added an extra two hours to the training regimen the old fool agreed.