| General Fiction posted December 11, 2019 |
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Home alone can be nerve-racking for a child.
Left Alone
by HarryT
On Christmas Eve, billowing snow blew across the roof tops and gathered on the neighborhood lawns like a feathery, white quilt. Mom was singing her favorite Christmas song by Bing Crosby, "White Christmas," then suddenly stopped. She said with a worried look on her face, “Oh dear, I forgot the chocolate chip cookie mix.” Mom checked her watch and said, “I have to run down the street to the corner store. I want to make Dad’s favorite cookies before I go to the airport to meet his plane. Do you think you and Duke will be okay by yourselves while I’m at the store?”
,
“Sure, Mom.” I said. “I’m double digits now and Duke is a good watch dog. We’ll be fine.”
“Good, I want to have plenty of cookies for the carol singers when they come and for us when your dad reads his favorite Christmas poem, A Visit from Saint Nicholas.
“Mom, why does he call it that? Everybody at school calls it ‘The Night Before Christmas.’”
“Because that’s what you grandfather called it when he read to your father and your aunt when they were little. Your grandfather came to America from Holland and that’s what the story was called in Europe.
Before she left Mom called Duke, the family’s German Shepard. Duke loped into the family room from his usual place looking out the front room window. Mom said, “You two will be fine until I get back. Nothing bad will happen as long as Duke is with you.” The Seven-Eleven was just down the street.
Duke and I watched the “The Polar Express, which Mom popped into the DVD player. Duke stretched his brown and black body next to me on the couch and put his head in my lap. A couple of minutes later, we heard noise on the back porch. Duke growled and jumped to his feet. I felt pangs of guilt because I must have forgotten to lock the porch door when I let Duke back into the house. Duke barked and wanted to head toward the back door, but I held him back.
“No,” I said. We don’t know who it is, he might be bad and want to rob us.” I pulled Duke down close to me. We heard the back door open. Duke broke from my grasp. I expected to hear him attacking the intruder. But there was only silence, and then a voice called, “Is anyone home?” It was Dad. Duke was standing on his hind legs, his front paws on Dad’s shoulders, and licking his face. Dad had caught an earlier plane and wanted to surprise us. Just then Mom came through the front door and ran to dad. We had a big family hug, danced and laughed. Mom said, “I have a great idea. Now that Dad’s home we can all make the cookies together. And so, we did and had a wonderful time, just the three of us and Duke. It was one of the best Christmas Eves ever.
Name that Christmas Movie Contest contest entry
On Christmas Eve, billowing snow blew across the roof tops and gathered on the neighborhood lawns like a feathery, white quilt. Mom was singing her favorite Christmas song by Bing Crosby, "White Christmas," then suddenly stopped. She said with a worried look on her face, “Oh dear, I forgot the chocolate chip cookie mix.” Mom checked her watch and said, “I have to run down the street to the corner store. I want to make Dad’s favorite cookies before I go to the airport to meet his plane. Do you think you and Duke will be okay by yourselves while I’m at the store?”
,
“Sure, Mom.” I said. “I’m double digits now and Duke is a good watch dog. We’ll be fine.”
“Good, I want to have plenty of cookies for the carol singers when they come and for us when your dad reads his favorite Christmas poem, A Visit from Saint Nicholas.
“Mom, why does he call it that? Everybody at school calls it ‘The Night Before Christmas.’”
“Because that’s what you grandfather called it when he read to your father and your aunt when they were little. Your grandfather came to America from Holland and that’s what the story was called in Europe.
Before she left Mom called Duke, the family’s German Shepard. Duke loped into the family room from his usual place looking out the front room window. Mom said, “You two will be fine until I get back. Nothing bad will happen as long as Duke is with you.” The Seven-Eleven was just down the street.
Duke and I watched the “The Polar Express, which Mom popped into the DVD player. Duke stretched his brown and black body next to me on the couch and put his head in my lap. A couple of minutes later, we heard noise on the back porch. Duke growled and jumped to his feet. I felt pangs of guilt because I must have forgotten to lock the porch door when I let Duke back into the house. Duke barked and wanted to head toward the back door, but I held him back.
“No,” I said. We don’t know who it is, he might be bad and want to rob us.” I pulled Duke down close to me. We heard the back door open. Duke broke from my grasp. I expected to hear him attacking the intruder. But there was only silence, and then a voice called, “Is anyone home?” It was Dad. Duke was standing on his hind legs, his front paws on Dad’s shoulders, and licking his face. Dad had caught an earlier plane and wanted to surprise us. Just then Mom came through the front door and ran to dad. We had a big family hug, danced and laughed. Mom said, “I have a great idea. Now that Dad’s home we can all make the cookies together. And so, we did and had a wonderful time, just the three of us and Duke. It was one of the best Christmas Eves ever.
,
“Sure, Mom.” I said. “I’m double digits now and Duke is a good watch dog. We’ll be fine.”
“Good, I want to have plenty of cookies for the carol singers when they come and for us when your dad reads his favorite Christmas poem, A Visit from Saint Nicholas.
“Mom, why does he call it that? Everybody at school calls it ‘The Night Before Christmas.’”
“Because that’s what you grandfather called it when he read to your father and your aunt when they were little. Your grandfather came to America from Holland and that’s what the story was called in Europe.
Before she left Mom called Duke, the family’s German Shepard. Duke loped into the family room from his usual place looking out the front room window. Mom said, “You two will be fine until I get back. Nothing bad will happen as long as Duke is with you.” The Seven-Eleven was just down the street.
Duke and I watched the “The Polar Express, which Mom popped into the DVD player. Duke stretched his brown and black body next to me on the couch and put his head in my lap. A couple of minutes later, we heard noise on the back porch. Duke growled and jumped to his feet. I felt pangs of guilt because I must have forgotten to lock the porch door when I let Duke back into the house. Duke barked and wanted to head toward the back door, but I held him back.
“No,” I said. We don’t know who it is, he might be bad and want to rob us.” I pulled Duke down close to me. We heard the back door open. Duke broke from my grasp. I expected to hear him attacking the intruder. But there was only silence, and then a voice called, “Is anyone home?” It was Dad. Duke was standing on his hind legs, his front paws on Dad’s shoulders, and licking his face. Dad had caught an earlier plane and wanted to surprise us. Just then Mom came through the front door and ran to dad. We had a big family hug, danced and laughed. Mom said, “I have a great idea. Now that Dad’s home we can all make the cookies together. And so, we did and had a wonderful time, just the three of us and Duke. It was one of the best Christmas Eves ever.
Words used: wonderful, brown, express, street, bad, before, carol, plane, white, street.
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