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I eagerly stood up and ran to the train<br />
door.<br />
As I trudged through the snow, I pulled<br />
out my brand-new iPhone and stared<br />
down at the map to find the nearest<br />
Starbucks. I couldn’t wait to have the<br />
warm chocolate taste running through<br />
my veins like fire. As I entered the coffee<br />
shop, the smell of peppermint filled the<br />
air. I saw the same lady who had sat next<br />
to me on the train! I waited patiently in<br />
line, eager for the warm drink to gently<br />
touch my lips. When it was finally time to<br />
order, I bought my drink, then left to begin<br />
my adventure!<br />
I awkwardly managed to make my way<br />
through the snow and finally reached my<br />
first destination, my little cousin’s house.<br />
As I arrived at her door, memories washed<br />
through my head like waves crashing on a<br />
beach. I anticipated seeing her, because<br />
I hadn’t seen her in years. I held up my<br />
hand to knock, and a shiver ran down my<br />
spine. What if she doesn’t recognize me?<br />
What if she doesn’t remember who I am?<br />
At that very moment, I saw the same old<br />
lady going by. Is she following me?<br />
I knocked twice, and the big, blue door<br />
opened with smiles and excited faces. I<br />
felt a sigh of relief as my cousin’s bright<br />
blue eyes met mine.<br />
“Addie!” she exclaimed and ran toward<br />
me, jumping into my arms as though<br />
no time had passed.<br />
Later that evening, my cousin Hailey<br />
and I decided to go to the neighborhood<br />
square to watch the tree-lighting.<br />
From the flyers I had seen hanging up, it<br />
was supposed to be spectacular! As we<br />
found a place to stand, Hailey’s big eyes<br />
glanced at the tree in wonder. It had<br />
lights hanging from every branch with<br />
big and small ornaments of many colors.<br />
Garland was everywhere with poinsettias<br />
wrapped around it. When the event<br />
was over, we went home to have our<br />
Christmas Eve dinner.<br />
When we arrived, Hailey pulled steak<br />
and mashed potatoes out of the fridge. I<br />
quickly chopped up some fruit and set it<br />
down on the table to eat. It was delicious!<br />
After we finished eating, I told Hailey that<br />
Santa was coming, so like the speed of<br />
light, she was upstairs getting ready for<br />
bed. I set out a couple of presents then left<br />
to let Santa do his job. I crept up the stairs<br />
and tucked myself into bed. The next<br />
morning, I felt a tug on my arm. My eyes<br />
opened wide. It was Hailey waking me<br />
up to go open presents. It was early in the<br />
morning, and the sun wasn’t up yet, but I<br />
crawled out of bed. When I came downstairs,<br />
there were presents lining the entire<br />
house! Hailey jumped and squealed with<br />
excitement. Before a word even came out<br />
of my mouth, she was opening gifts.<br />
When I looked out the window, I realized<br />
that the old lady who had sat next to<br />
me on the train was Mrs. Claus. She was<br />
waving at Hailey and me. Right next to<br />
her was Santa! On his sleigh!<br />
It was a great Christmas, and I enjoyed<br />
every second of it. That year was the best<br />
Christmas yet!<br />
Honorable Mention<br />
The Green, Greedy Grinch<br />
by Atticus Gordon<br />
Winter Garden<br />
One cold Christmas morning in New<br />
Jersey, Jerry, Johnny and Ruby Gurr<br />
were excited to open Santa’s presents.<br />
But something green was quietly creeping<br />
around the neighborhood. It was the<br />
green, greedy Grinch!<br />
He picked the specific home he wanted<br />
to steal from, and it was the Gurrs’ house.<br />
He took the children’s presents, which<br />
made Jerry, Johnny and Ruby very sad.<br />
Santa found out, and he called the police.<br />
A bald policeman arrested the greedy<br />
Grinch and made him give back the presents.<br />
The Grinch felt sad, because he had<br />
to spend Christmas in a dark, dirty jail.<br />
We learn from this story that if you<br />
steal, there are consequences, even on<br />
Christmas Day.<br />
Honorable Mention<br />
Christmas Crisis<br />
by Will McAfee<br />
Tuscany<br />
It was Christmas Eve, and Danny was<br />
shopping for his family. He had bought<br />
every gift except his mom’s. Loud voices,<br />
beeping cash registers and muffled music<br />
filled his ears. All around him, people<br />
were shoving and pushing to snatch their<br />
items. Danny felt overwhelmed. All year,<br />
he had been saving money for gifts.<br />
Danny knew exactly what he was going<br />
to buy for his mom. It was the perfect<br />
necklace with large shiny gems, and it<br />
was on sale. But there was only one left!<br />
As Danny raced through the aisle, a regal<br />
lady greedily grabbed the special necklace.<br />
Danny was devastated. He left the<br />
store miserably with no gift for his mom.<br />
www.SouthwestOrlandoBulletin.com x December 20, 2018 — January 9, 2019 x 21<br />
What would his mom do if she didn’t get<br />
a gift from him?<br />
Danny went home to think. He came<br />
up with many ideas for gifts, but none of<br />
them were good enough for his mom. If<br />
only he had gotten that stunning necklace.<br />
But, wait! Danny could make a necklace.<br />
He looked around his room for supplies<br />
and gathered string, power tools and the<br />
special geode he had bought as a souvenir<br />
on his family’s trip to Alaska. The<br />
geode was special to him, but his mom<br />
was even more special. Danny drilled a<br />
hole through the geode and threaded the<br />
string through it. When he was done, he<br />
carefully wrapped the handmade necklace.<br />
He was excited to give it to his mom<br />
in the morning. Even though it wasn’t<br />
the perfect necklace from the store, he<br />
thought his mom might like it.<br />
On Christmas morning, Danny’s mom<br />
had unwrapped every gift but his. Danny<br />
gulped with nervousness as she lifted his<br />
gift to open it. Her face was surprised<br />
when she saw the necklace. Danny, who<br />
thought she didn’t like it, was discouraged.<br />
Then she smiled.<br />
“I love it!” his mom said as she gave<br />
him a big hug.<br />
“I like it best, because you made it,” she<br />
whispered in his ear.<br />
Honorable Mention<br />
The First Snow<br />
by Kaitlyn Ochoa<br />
Wesmere<br />
Naomi gazed lazily out the sun-stained<br />
window, eyelids half closed. Wintertime in<br />
the small town of Pine was always sunny<br />
and hot, definitely not Christmas weather.<br />
The brunette sighed as the sound of clicking<br />
heels snapped her out of sulking.<br />
“Naomi, get ready!” her mother<br />
barked. “We’re going Christmas shopping<br />
today, remember?”<br />
Naomi huffed. Christmas shopping was<br />
no fun when it felt like summer. Trudging<br />
down the stairs, her mother shot her a<br />
bright smile.<br />
“There you are,” she chirped happily.<br />
The sulking brunette only hummed in<br />
response, brushing past her mother and<br />
out the door.<br />
It seemed that every corner of Pine was<br />
bustling with people; well, every corner<br />
except the Christmas tree lot. Naomi<br />
CONTINUED ON PAGE 22<br />
Messages will be published in the Feb. 7, 2019, issue.<br />
Deadline: Jan. 16, 2018 • Length: 20 words maximum