121516_SWB_DIGITAL EDITION

34 x December 15, 2016 - January 4, 2017 x www.SouthwestOrlandoBulletin.com
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 33
“Stop, Mother,” Carol said. “Talk slowly.
What is it?”
“Your father is going ... well, we want
you to ...“
Her mother stopped and burst into tears.
Carol figured she would have to ask her
father what was going on if she wanted to
know. So, she slid from her mother’s grasp
and went to find her father.
“It’s Christmas Eve, C, the night of ...” her
father started to say.
Carol could tell her father was at a loss
for words, so she quickly helped him.
“Amazingness?” she asked.
“Yes,” her father said, beaming at her.
“Now remember, don’t skip any houses
and have fun!”
Carol’s mother hugged her tightly and
then burst into a lecture about safety and
rules.
“It’s going to be all right, Mother,” Carol
said. “I can take care of myself.”
The big surprise was that Carol was going
to get to drop off all of the presents this year.
The reindeer landed the sleigh on a
roof, and Carol hopped out, holding three
presents. She walked over to the chimney,
took a deep breath, and jumped in. She
slid down a few inches and then stopped.
Carol was stuck.
How can my father do this? she wondered.
I should have been practicing back
at home.
Carol wormed her way down the chimney
and set the presents by the tree. Then
she went out the door and whistled for the
reindeer to come and get her. The rest of
the night went flawlessly, and Carol worked
until morning.
When she got back home, her mother
rushed over and hugged her while her father
asked, “How did it go, C?”
“Amazing,” Carol replied. “Can I do it
again next year?”
Her father looked at her mother, who
said, “I don’t see why not.”
“I can’t wait!” Carol exclaimed.
Honorable Mention
A Christmas Miracle
by Gabriella Bull
Carriage Point
It was Christmas Eve night. No one was
awake, except me, Gabby. I was going to
the bathroom when I looked out the window.
I saw a glistening light in the sky!
Was it Santa and his reindeer? “Nah,”
I whispered. I continued walking to the
bathroom.
When I came out, I heard a creeaakkk,
and the front door opened. I quickly ran
into a dark corner so no one could see me.
Then, right before my eyes, I saw him
— Santa gobbling up the milk and cookies
I had left for him before I went to bed.
He also put presents underneath the tree.
Man, he’s fat, I thought. When he left about
10 minutes later, I went back to my warm,
cozy bed.
In the morning, beautifully wrapped
presents were under the tree, and my reindeer
stocking was filled with candy canes.
Then, my sister, Alex, and Mom came out
of their bedrooms.
“I saw Santa. I really did!” I said to my
mom.
“That’s a nice dream you had, sweetie,”
Mom responded.
“No. I really truly saw him. It wasn’t a
dream,” I said.
“Prove it,” Alex said.
“I ... but, whatever,” I stammered. “Let’s
just open presents.”
I ended up getting a bunch of cool toys.
But what I didn’t notice until we were done
opening gifts, was our elf, Sparkie, holding
a letter. It read: Dear Gabby, Even if your
mom or sister Alex don’t believe you, I do. I
saw you last night. Santa. P.S. Show this to
your family to prove them wrong.
So that’s what I did, and you should’ve
seen Alex’s face. (Shh ... don’t tell her I said
that.)
Honorable Mention
The Winter Holiday
by Bryce Ownby
Oaks of Windermere
John hated winter. It was always cold,
and he couldn’t play outside. His brothers,
Tim and Jensen, loved playing outside and
had snowball fights every day, but John
hated it. On the first day of winter break,
all John did was wake up, eat, watch ESPN
SportsCenter, and sleep. He did the same
thing the entire first week of winter break.
He had grown tired of watching golf highlights
from Dubai and soccer Plays of the
Day from a tournament in Sao Paulo.
Then, on the first day of the second week
of winter break, John got sick of moping
around. He looked out the window and
saw, as usual, Tim and Jensen playing
outside. But he also saw that there was a
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