The 6th of January present

The first days of January had passed slowly after the crazy days of December. The children were still in holidays as well as their dad. Thus, he decided to carry them outside to see everything not seen in the last month.

Jonathan worked till the 16^th of December when he received his salary and his bonus. He was so happy. Then he rested the remaining days of the month converted in a summary of visits to the family, friends and Christmas events including the food, of course. Susana was with him when she could. The other days she stayed at home cooking tons of food that were kept in containers to be eaten during the end of December and the beginning of January when she could rest.

To Jonathan the Christmas season means to give his sons the real sense of Christmas. For the kids, it means a lot of presents brought from Saint Clause in the 25^th of December and from the Three Wise Men in the 6^th of January. The meaning of Christmas includes the candies from the piñatas, the likes in facebook and funny messages in whatsapp. For Jonathan, when he was a kid, the Christmas meaning was the Mexican parties named posadas, the piñatas and his friends, and taking their bicycles along the streets with houses and trees trough their windows. It meant visiting Nativities with his parents and visit also the center Christmas decorations. Christmas was also plenty of delicious food and aromas. His grandma used to cook romeritos and bacalao because turkey was not very popular in those days. He used to decorate the Christmas tree with his parents and also a nativity and when the Christmas eve arrived, his illusion was to see his cousins and all his family around a long table plenty of delicious food and aromas.

To Susana, Christmas used to mean sadness during many years until she met Jonathan. Her mother died a 25^th of December in the past when she was a child. That day anybody said nothing. She and her grandparents had a Christmas dinner alone. They put a Christmas movie in the TV until she was asleep. The next day everything was quiet as if nobody lived in the city. Her grandparents slept in a room next to her. She walked along the houses without socks. In the night she was ill in her bed and through her dreams she believed to hear her father’s voice. She recovered until the 31^st of December and had a dinner with her grandparents and her father. In January she knew that her mother was passed away. Those days she heard about stories of stars and souls and wished to see her mom the 6^th of January but she received a doll instead. She hated that doll 30 years ago and by now her dad was died 15 years ago.

She met Jonathan at the university and then she lived other Christmas times. He was very enthusiastic about the season and she was happy with him. They used to go to the posada-parties, break piñatas and having the Christmas Eve dinner together with his family, a great family lead by his old grandma. Those times were great as their marriage as well. Christmas time was also great with their children despite Jonathan thoughts that Christmas of his childhood was better… but for her, it was the best time.

However, when January arrived, Susana wanted the solitude. She usually asked Jonathan to carry the children away or she leaves them with somebody else. The 5^th of January was particularly difficult for her because the wish of seeing her mom was in her hearth since she was a child. ‘ I’d love so much to see my mother. She used to whisper to herself.

People usually say that a wish can come true if you ask for it with all your heart. Some other people have seen their beloved relatives in dreams after dead. People say so many things that are not always true but Susana believed even a little in a miracle. When the 5^th of January arrived, she took her kid’s balloons and leaves them to float in the air. Children believe that they go where the Wise Men are. When she left the balloons, her heart wished to see her mom again and suddenly she didn’t see the balloons and anything around them.

Everything was dark and the time stopped.

In front of her eyes all her life memories passed as projections of a movie. The voices of her children were so low and her heart sound was very strong. In front of her there was the image of her mom caress her. She didn’t see anything else. She only remembered her mom’s face when she waked up the next day. A nurse was talking with his husband when he entered to the room.

‘What happened to me? She said to Jonathan that was holding her and crying a little.

‘Susana, you have to reduce your stress. This was not serious and you’re ok but I was so scared. The kids were so scared that forgot to open their presents. You’re the only present that they wait.

‘I’ve seen my mom in my dreams, you know? She said with teardrops in her eyes. ‘It never happened to me before.

When she returned to her home some days later, the Christmas tree was in the living room with the presents and the children’s cards addressed to the Wise Men. One of them had the three kings in a draw colored by crayons. In her heart she knew that they made her dream come true after all this time. With these thoughts in her mind she was smiling while her children were opening their 6^th of January presents.