122018 SWB DIGITAL EDITION

12 x December 20, 2018 — January 9, 2019 x www.SouthwestOrlandoBulletin.com
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11
people would feel in a lifetime. Tears of
joy filled the eyes of my comrades as we
embraced each other while praising God.
We still did not know what the cause of
the cease fire was. Presents, from where I
did not know, were being exchanged between
the two armies.
Out of nowhere, two goal posts stood.
Troops lined up to play a game of football,
which I spectated. Time was going
by extremely fast, as the 90 minutes of the
football game were suddenly over. The
Central Powers won with three TDs to the
Allies’ two.
Random Christmas carols were being
sung, surprisingly well, and I sung along
with not a care in the world. Then, it was
kind of quiet, and someone began praying
for everyone on the field and in the
world. After that, a table was set up for
the most amazing feast imaginable. The
smell of turkey, roasted vegetables and
apple pie overwhelmed every other scent.
Sadly, because of the greed of time, the
glorious day had to end. For the longest
hour of my life, both sides made their way
back to the trenches. Then another horn
sounded to continue the fighting. And so,
the next phase of my life resumed.
Runner-Up
Scout’s Christmas Wish
by Sue Sicard
Windermere Chase
Sometimes my name is Fuzz Face,
sometimes it’s Good Boy, and believe it
or not, my human family calls me Drop
It! However, I have finally figured out
that my real name is Scout. I am a labradoodle,
and I was a Christmas gift last
year. Boy, was my mom surprised when I
jumped out of a box. You see, my mom
did not want a dog
I heard her say, “No more dogs. My
heart cannot handle another heartbreak
of loving them and then watching them
die in my arms.”
You guessed it. Skip, the 13-year-old
Labrador retriever, is no longer here ... or
is he?
The kids love me. They actually fight
over which room I will sleep in. They
don’t even care that I take their socks and
leave them all over the house. They love
me unconditionally. But, if I could have
one wish for Christmas, it would be for
my new mom to hold me, pet me and
love me.
When everyone leaves the house and
I am home alone in a place they call
“crate,” I sit and wait for my new friend
to come visit me. My friend is none other
than Skip. He comes and talks to me about
my family. He tells me that Courtney loves
me, but it is just her job to clean my ears
and give me a bath. He also tells me that
Grant loves me, but he is a typical middle
school boy that does not have a brother
to wrestle with and tease, so he considers
me his brother. He tells me that Dad loves
me, but it is his job to tell everyone to stop
giving me people food and to teach me
not to rip up the couches.
Lastly, Skip talks to me about Mom. He
tells me that Mom was there for his last
breath and that Mom loves me but does
not know how or when to allow me into
her heart.
“Hang around Mom closely, never
leaving her heels, and this Christmas,
I will give you one last clue to win her
heart,” Skip said.
I did as I was told. After all, Skip was
once their dog. I licked Courtney after she
gave me a bath, and she kissed me back
on my nose. I snarled at Grant playfully
as he wrapped me up like a pretzel, but
then I gave him one sloppy lick from his
chin to his eyeballs. I sat on Dad’s lap just
after he yelled at me for digging a hole in
the backyard.
As for Mom, I followed her everywhere.
I sat on her feet as she did her
work on the computer, and I sat patiently
close by as she made dinner and did the
dishes. However, she still showed me no
attention.
Christmas finally arrived. The tree was
joyful and filled with shining bright lights.
It was the day I had been waiting for.
Christmas Eve night, Skip came to me
and said, “It is time. Mom has not gone
running since I passed. I used to bring her
a running shoe, and she would laugh and
say, ‘Let’s go!’ It was our special thing
only we did together. Bring her that shoe.”
I ran into her closet and grabbed the
shoe. I then ran into the living room,
jumped over all the presents, and lifted it
to Mom’s lap. To my surprise, Mom cried.
But then, she burst out laughing, and I finally
heard those wonderful words. “Let’s
go!”
It was the best Christmas ever.
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