121516_SWB_DIGITAL EDITION

www.SouthwestOrlandoBulletin.com x December 15, 2016 - January 4, 2017 x 25
The entries submitted for Southwest Orlando Bulletin’s 25th annual
Stories of the Season contest told tales of special visits from Santa, mystical
holiday creatures and the joy of spending time with family and friends.
Whether they recreate holiday memories or take readers to imaginary
places filled with elves, reindeer and their ilk, they are sure to add holiday
spirit to all this year.
Congratulations to first-place winner Victoria Hernandez of Sand
Lake Hills, runner-up Tabitha Eastham of Ocoee, and child winner
Porter MacCabe of Saddlebrooke, all of whom received cash
prizes. Also included are submissions selected as honorable mentions.
The staff of the Southwest Orlando Bulletin extends thank-yous to everyone
who entered the contest and wishes a happy holiday season to all.
Winner
My Favorite Time of Year
by Victoria Hernandez
Sand Lake Hills
Christmas has always been my favorite
time of year. My reasons have changed,
however.
As a little girl, I loved it for the same
reasons as any other kid: Santa Claus
and presents. Staying up late with my little
brother, hoping to see the jolly old man
in the red suit, and tracking him down on
websites were always exciting. Of course,
we would end up falling asleep before he
arrived, but in the morning, the best part of
all came — opening the gifts he’d brought
for us! I now look back and wish our childhood
had never ended, for it now seems
10 times more magical.
I still love Christmas, but now I love the
lights ... though it is a pain to set them up.
I now love the weather ... when I’m not
standing outside in the dark, frozen in
place at a bus stop. I now love the decorations
... even though every magazine in
the store makes me jealous of the perfectly
imperfect decorated homes. I now love the
drinks, because it is the only time of the
year my grandmother makes homemade
hot punch. I now love the food, because it
is the second time in the year that we eat
like kings. And I now love the time spent
with family and friends, because it is one of
the few times everyone is together.
Christmastime is always hectic, crazy
and busy, but full of laughter, memories
and nostalgia. Whenever my family comes
together, it is loud but cozy. I treasure these
moments very much.
Toward the end of the past couple of
years, I have found myself reflecting about
life and the previous 12 months. This year,
I’ll be able to think about 16 years worth
of memories and the awesome 2016 I
have had. As beautiful as Christmas is, it
always comes with a bittersweet sense of
closure. Perhaps that is why it is so beautiful.
The feeling of closure makes me stop,
think, remember and enjoy the present.
That’s what Christmas is all about in the
end. It is about remembrance and being
thankful — thankful for small things like
Santa Claus, presents, annoying lights,
cold and sunny weather, perfectly imperfect
decorations, grandma’s homemade
punch, savory meals and loud-but-cozy
family time.
Runner-Up
A Fresh Start
by Tabitha Eastham
Ocoee
She stepped off the train — a little disheveled
from the long ride. She never
imagined that she would take so long to
get from the big city to this sleepy little
town. She had, however, shared great
conversation with her seatmate — a sweet,
good-looking, younger gentleman traveling
home from a long business trip. Sadly,
she would never see him again.
As soon as her face touched the air, she
noticed a swift change in the temperature.
She was met with bitter coldness, the kind
of cold that feels like tiny daggers pricking
the flesh. It had been an especially bad
year. With the death of her grandmother
and then a broken wedding engagement, it
was time for a fresh start. What better way
to start anew than to move to a new place
and start a new job, and that was exactly
what she had chosen to do.
She took a seat on the bench outside of
the train station in an attempt to wait for
the carriage that was to come fetch her.
An older gentleman was already sitting on
the bench reading the town gazette. The
moment she took her seat, he looked up
from his paper and flashed her a brief, yet
quite congenial, smile. She reciprocated his
politeness by smiling back.
Hour after hour passed, but the carriage
never came. She was beginning to worry
that she would never make it to her destination,
which was the town’s local hotel.
In that time, the friendly elderly gentleman
rode his carriage down to the feed
store to purchase items and passed back
by the train station.
“You’ve been sittin’ there a long time,
young lady,” he said. “Do you need a ride
somewhere?”
STLUKE ’ S
UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
“I was waiting on the local carriage company
to come and get me, but it seems that
the driver isn’t making a stop here today,”
she said.
“You missed the last ride. It was at one
o’clock in the afternoon, and seeing that it
is now 5 p.m., you are going to be stuck
here tonight,” the man said matter-of-factly.
“Oh, my!” she exclaimed.
She had no clue what she was going to
do, as the weather was starting to take a
turn for the worse. The snow was beginning
CONTINUED ON PAGE 26
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