Not Seeing The Obvious (NSTO)

Chapter 14

Holiday season. The best time of the year. Especially if you are living in a sunny environment to soak in all of the heat. I do still want to experience a white Christmas with snow and all but I do love the heat. It's Christmas morning and my family always go to church on Christmas day and eve. This is to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. I am glad that they let all of us (my sister, cousins and I) sleep in on Christmas morning but on the Eve it is a must for all of us to go. Then during the day, friends and family come to celebrate with us by having an all-you-can-eat buffet.

It is also tradition for the children to put on a show. This ranges from a play, dancing, singing or modelling. Something has to be done. It gets more embarrassing for my sister and me as we get older because we just look ridiculous amongst the little children. Soon the madness has to stop because I am not a child anymore. For heaven's sake, I am almost 20. After the mass lunch, it becomes an intimate family dinner. 

At dinner, we eat the left-overs from lunch and will be eating that food for the next few days. Then it becomes the time to open all the presents. It always starts from youngest to oldest because the younger you are, the more impatient you are and want immediate gratification. You also notice how children want impractical things that will become obsolete in a few months or they would get bored and want the next best thing. The children also act as present runners and deliver each gift from the Christmas tree to the rightful recipient and if the receiver would like the child to open the gift she is free to do so.

Being in varsity has taught me to get things you really need like money (which you need like all the time) and you run out of clothes a lot especially when you either gain or lose weight. The only technological thing I wanted was an external hard drive. So I got a hard drive, new clothes and money. The perfect Christmas gifts. All thanks to the fact that we still have to write Christmas wish lists. We were all done opening our presents when Belinda noticed another small present under the tree. It must have been a bigger present and fell to the back. I bet it was on top of Belinda's bicycle and her excitement tossed it off.

"Who's present is that?"

"Bel go look and see."

"For Lya. Who's that? I guess Santa delivered it to the wrong house."

"No, he didn't, it is for Lydia."

I asked Belinda to help me open the present as I read the letter attached to it silently to me. 

'To Lya

This is for you, my little sunflower and pocket of sunshine.

Love

Lincoln '

It turned out to be a silver sunflower necklace. The middle of it was filled with crystals and the back was engraved, 'Lya = Love you always". I wanted to burst into tears of joy but I had to keep my cool for my family.

"So who is it from?"

"Lincoln."

Belinda: "Your boyfriend?"

"No he is not my boyfriend, we are just friends."

"You better go call him and thank him for the gift. It's not every day you get something from a guy."

"Not nice. I will call him mum."

"Darling, he's a keeper."

"Thanks, Gran. I'm realising it."

I step outside onto the balcony outside the lounge area to make my call. I only make sure to close the sliding door enough to get some privacy and not to raise eyebrows for attempting to be secretive about a friend. The boy still does not have a phone so I call on his home landline.