A BEAUTIFUL AND MEMORABLE CHRISTMAS

 A BEAUTIFUL AND MEMORABLE CHRISTMAS

Above the clouds, a voice was heard:

"He's going to slander him, insult him, defame him to the bitter end."

"He hasn't said a word yet," another voice replied.

"I'll take care of that," the first voice said defiantly.

"No! No! No! My son will be here any minute, and with his salary we'll buy everything, and we'll all have a beautiful Christmas. He's always been very responsible," Mateo García told himself for the umpteenth time, trying to calm down.

It was almost 10:30 p.m. on December 24, 2026, and there was still no news of his son. The entire responsibility for Christmas Eve had fallen on the young man's shoulders, as he was the sole breadwinner for the family at only 18 years old. The family had fallen into financial ruin: the father, a bricklayer, had fallen from scaffolding and was incapacitated for two months; Simultaneously, Sara, his wife, had been fired overnight from her hospital administration job, the very same day she received confirmation of her pregnancy at that same hospital. They had no savings left and no one left to borrow from, as they were already in debt to many.

The family was completed by Martín, 15, and the twins Franco and Facundo, 11. But it wasn't all bad news: their eldest son, Gabriel, had started working at Ford with his high school mechanical technician diploma. This filled Mateo with pride: "My son works at Ford," he would say to himself and tell everyone, as if to say, "My son, the doctor." This lifted his spirits, but at 10:45 p.m., his composure crumbled when his son's cell phone went unanswered.

The twins were playing video games on the computer. Sara looked out the window, hopeful, knowing it could be a sad Christmas, but also a tragic one if something bad had happened to her son. Martín, in his bed, was watching Christmas videos on his phone when he saw a work of art, so he called his mother to show it to her. The boy was watching the artistic music video for George Michael's song "December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-xzyD00_fI&list=RDl-xzyD00_fI&start_radio=1

"Let's do like that kid, let's imagine a world where everything goes well and we have a Merry Christmas," he told his mother, who was wiping away tears at the beauty of the video and the lovely melody.

"We're already there, son," she said gently but firmly.

"Yes, let's imagine a world where Gabriel is okay and is on his way with the money so we can buy everything," Martín added energetically.

"Buy, Mom? At this hour on the 24th? I wonder if something has happened to him?" Martín asked.

"No, he'll be here soon." "Traffic held him up, he'll be here soon," she said. "I'll set the table," she added, as if holding the decorations with the strength of a mother who loves her son, and brought out the plates.

"He grabbed his paycheck and went out partying with his buddies," Mateo thought to himself. But then he added:

"No! No! No! My son will be here soon, and with his paycheck we'll buy everything and we'll all have a wonderful Christmas. He's always been very responsible."

Mateo tried to remember all the times his son had shown himself to be a good person and focused on them, struggling with himself.

"To top it all off, there's nothing in the fridge," Sara whispered to him.

"He'll be here soon," he said, calling him again, when the clock struck 11:00 p.m.

The explosions of rockets and fireworks continued. There was hardly anyone left in the street; They were all gathered, eating and celebrating the birth of the Savior of humanity. And they were on pins and needles.

"If he said, 'I'll buy everything,' he's not going to spend the money on prostitutes... he wouldn't do something like that to us..."

"No! No! No! My son will be here soon, and with his salary we'll buy everything, and we'll all have a wonderful Christmas. He's always been very responsible."

Hope was being bombarded by the passage of time. The twins were already nodding off, overcome by sleep.

"If Gabriel doesn't arrive, what do you think about going hunting for something to eat?" Facundo said to his brother, handing him the joystick.

"In the middle of the city, what are we going to hunt?" he replied.

"Dogs?"

"Would you eat a dog?"

"No, but they eat them in China."

"His brother will be here soon," their mother replied, hearing the absurd conversation. At 11:10 p.m., as if gathering her strength to redouble her faith just when everything seemed to be falling apart, she added emphatically and happily:

"Let's remember that 2026 years ago in Bethlehem, a married couple brought the Savior of humanity into the world in a stable. There were no hotels or inns for them, and He was the King of Kings and He conquers the greatest darkness. We are here in a house. Thank you, Father! And we will get through this..."

"Thank you, Father," Mateo repeated, but then he said to himself: "He took the money and ran off with his first paycheck! No, Mateo, what are you saying? How could he do such a thing?"

-No! No! No! Yes, my son is coming and with his salary we are going to buy everything and we are all going to have a beautiful Christmas. He was always very responsible, serious and mature. "It's coming," he said just when the cell phone rang at 11:30 p.m. It was him.

—YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO ME! -shout-. THEY STOLEN EVERYTHING FROM ME... —and the communication was cut off.

The family's uproar brought them all together at the entrance of the house. He called again.

—My battery is low. "Everything's fine, I'm on my way," he managed to say when he was cut off again.

"They stole everything," said Martín.

"But it's okay, that's what matters," Mateo said.

They tried to call him, but the phone was no longer answering.

"You saw that he was coming," said the mother, happily. And if there is nothing to eat it doesn't matter, what matters is that the six of us are together. Christmas will only be sad but not fatal.

With that contrast, his heart was filled with happiness.

"All seven," Mateo said, holding her belly. She sure is a girl.

"It's a girl," she told him, happy because her son was showing signs of life and all his ghosts had died.

After a while Gabriel arrived by taxi. Paco, a homeless man who lived nearby, passed by and opened the car door for him; Gabriel always gave him something and this time he gave him a coin with a "Merry Christmas, Paco." The young man came down with huge bags full of food, bottles and cans.

—You don't know the odyssey I just went through. It was like a movie, all in three hours,” he said, entering the hallway.

They hugged, kissed and entered the house while he told them.

—I passed by an open delicatessen, bought two chickens with potatoes and salads, and bought wine, ciders and some cans of fruit salad. AND NOT ONLY THAT, but I have gifts for everyone, because when I arrived at the Ford workshop I found a garage sale with some gift prices; I had saved my lunch money and I sacrificed it for you. But that doesn't matter! For the soccer player in the family... I brought him a soccer ball! —he said, taking it out of the backpack and handing it to him.

—Thanks, bro! —Martin told him.

Everyone was dazed; When they thought all was lost, he had even remembered to buy gifts.

—For the twins I have two paddle tennis paddles, they don't have to borrow them anymore, but I owe them the ball. He said hugging them both. Who couldn't believe it. You had his gift in your hand!

Immediately, the children went to the drawer where there were three balls stored and, happily, they started training right there.

—And for you, mommy, I have a Louis Vuitton... No! It won't be a Vuitton, but it's very good, look.

"It's not a lie," said the mother. But I just needed a new bag and this one is fantastic. Thanks, son.

"And for you," he said to Mateo, "what you like so much: a multipurpose penknife." “It has a knife, a magnifying glass, a screwdriver, a punch, a saw, a mini blade, look,” he said, opening it completely. And he quickly added mischievously: “It also comes with a fan, shower and heating.”

The twins died laughing. Mateo took it with moist eyes, almost feeling guilty for the demons he had had to chase out of his head.

—The best gift is that you are well after being missing for three hours. They hugged and kissed.

"Well, I'll tell you," said Gabriel as everyone settled down at the table and opened the packages with the golden, crispy chickens.

Sara began to serve, but immediately clarified:

—I serve them, but they don't touch it, because today is Christmas and first we will bless dinner.

Gabriel began his story:

—First, at Ford they made us work half an hour extra. Then they didn't want to pay us in cash because they said they didn't have any, that they were going to deposit us on Monday at the ATMs. When they said that, I 'cried the letter' to the manager; I told them that I had to buy Christmas dinner and Karina, from Human Resources, who is a sweetheart, called me aside and paid me alone, with the warning that I not tell anyone. I even think he paid me out of his own pocket! I was happy...

—And is she pretty? Father asked.

—On top of that, she is very pretty and single!

—Before the end of the year, he already has a girlfriend in the company! Mateo added happily.

I continue, but as soon as I left, a block away, a guy on a motorcycle passes by and points a revolver at me: "Give me everything at once." He puts his hand in his pocket and takes out the envelope with the 1,500 pesos and his cell phone, gets on the motorcycle and leaves. I freeze but a policeman on a motorcycle just passes by alone and I tell him: "That one robbed me." He tells me to get on and the chase begins.

Everyone looked at him exorbitantly, almost leaving the chickens in second place despite the hunger of it being almost 12.

—We chased him for a few blocks until he crashed into a truck. The ambulance had to come and they took him away unconscious. The police officer managed to take my salary and cell phone out of his pocket, but he told me that we had to file a report. We went to the police station, we did it, but they wanted to give me the money because how did they know it was mine. I begged them and explained that my family was waiting for me, in the end they gave in and gave me everything. But it doesn't end there: when I got out, I saw three taxis, and I got into the middle one. At the next traffic light, a motorcycle that ran a red light crashed into the taxi in front of us, injuring the driver. We kept going, and at the next light, some guys were coming at us, but they turned around and went to the taxi behind us and robbed it at gunpoint. They almost robbed me a second time; a police force stopped them, and they chose the taxi behind us. I managed to take a picture of him leaving, which I'm going to send to the police. And when I got here, an alien spaceship tried to abduct me, but I stopped it in the name of Jesus—she said, laughing. No, it's a joke, but it was close... It was a three-hour express odyssey.

They started eating. Sara was serving standing up. At that moment, Mateo realized something: his son's odyssey was in line with his own mental musings, which accused his son without foundation, and he was sure that if he had given in to the slander and ill thoughts, they wouldn't be eating so happily... and the thief would never have been caught. Or he would have stolen it a second time.

"And how did he figure that out?" a voice asked.

"I didn't tell him a word," said another.

"He figured it out on his own," said another voice.

They ate, drank, opened the ciders, hugged their gifts, and went to sleep, plump with happiness after having spent a beautiful Christmas.

THE END

Don't miss this work of art

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-xzyD00_fI&list=RDl-xzyD00_fI&start_radio=1