This is a story I told at a December 2022 storytelling event called T or C Story Lab. The theme was, "Well, That Was Awful..." It gave me the chance to flesh out an Adam story we had been telling for a long time. Here it is again, in honor of Adam. Hopefully, he has his Water Buffalo now!
Pulling out Christmas tree decorations every year is always a trip down memory lane, and this year was no exception. My daughter and her partner were with us, and being new to the family, he was getting filled in on our family history one ornament at a time. Then Jane pulled the water buffalo ornament out of the box, and I said, “No. No. NO!!” You cannot tell Mike that story, he will think I am a terrible mother!”
Parenting is a tough job, but when it came to Christmas, I did pretty well. Santa had his place, rather smallish. Jesus had his, front and center. My kids knew Christmas was not about them. In fact, one of the things we did was get one of those catalogs where you can purchase a gift of an animal, goat, chicken, or pig for a family in a third-world country. With your donation, the animal is purchased locally and given to the family along with animal husbandry mentoring. It really is a marvelous idea and lifts a lot of people out of poverty. I highly recommend it.
So, going back in time. - What my kids especially love is pouring over the pictures in the catalog. Elisabeth always chooses chickens, and pigs are a favorite, though rather expensive. With the money allocated to each child we can only buy a portion of a pig, the rest comes from other donors. I didn’t bother to explain the nuances of this to the kids. Too complicated and not really necessary, right?
Well, this particular year, Adam has just turned four. He is an adorable little towheaded with big brown eyes and a soft, soft heart. He isn’t quite sure what is happening, but taking cues from older siblings, he looks carefully through the catalog and chooses A Water Buffalo! A Water Buffalo! Oh my, this causes a lot of excitement. Nobody has ever chosen anything quite as majestic as a Water Buffalo.
The kids cut pictures out of the catalog and glued them onto construction paper, making an ornament to hang on the tree. They talk excitedly about their animals, what kind of food they eat, and where they live. We have to look up where Water Buffalos live and why anyone would want a Water buffalo. As we pulled out maps and books, I pat myself on the back: fun AND educational! Perfect holiday parenting.
Christmas morning!!!! The kids pour down the stairs. Stockings!!! “Ok, don’t eat any candy yet! Breakfast first, then the presents under the tree.” Such excitement. Presents are exchanged with the older kids playing Santa, you all know the drill. All of a sudden, I notice Adam standing there with his Water Buffalo ornament clutched in his little tiny hands, tears pouring down his face. “Why Adam, whatever is the matter?!” We all huddle around him. Crying on Christmas, how can this be a thing? He is sobbing so hard now that we can barely understand what he is saying.
"Where’s my…. sob, sob. Where’s my…. howl. Where’s my WATER BUFFALO?!"
Well, if you are four and your mother says to pick out a gift from a catalog, and you choose a Water Buffalo, and then Christmas morning arrives with all its splendor and glory and build up, and your Water Buffalo is nowhere to be seen? Well, you might cry too. Sigh… terrible holiday parenting.
Of course, Jane can’t wait to tell Mike this story despite my protests, and at the end, he looks at me and says, “Wow! That was…
I know, that was…. Well, that was AWFUL!
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