Christmas in July

My father is a mighty man, and mighty men have mighty friends. My dad had lots of mighty little friends. I remember, when I was only five, staring at his friends and thinking, “This friend is really tall with big hands, but this friend is very small with little hands.” His tiny friends came over every day without a single day off. His big friends, however, would only come two days a week. My father would open the door, greet them, and lead them out to the shop. Some days, when I wanted my father to take me to the park, the little friends would work on their own all day in the shop.

I was never allowed to peek into the garage. My father promised that if I obeyed, I would get a new toy each month. He even installed a perfectly pink shelf in my room, made just for my new toys. One month, I got a dreamhouse. The next, I got a tea set so I could host a tea party with all my friends. But my favorite gift was a beautiful doll with long brown hair and button eyes. I named her Elsie; Mama says it matches my name, Noel. I love Elsie, and she is my best friend. We hold hands, and we even play outside together.

When I turned seven, I entered first grade. But the kids there were really mean. They used to make fun of Elsie and me. They said I shouldn’t be friends with a doll. I asked my dad, and he said, “Imagination is the gold of the Earth, and only those who possess it will truly be rich in life.” Whatever that means. But Elsie and I kept playing and laughing together.

When my shelf got full, I told my dad that I didn’t need any more gifts. And not to worry because I would still keep my promise. And I did. But I was curious. People in school always fought over whose dad was the coolest. They used to call my dad names because all he did was work in his shop all day. One day, I asked him why he didn’t have a job. He said, “I do. My job is to spread warmth and joy.” The kids still made fun of him though.

I thought that if I invited them to my house and Mama made her famous cookies with milk, they wouldn’t be mean anymore. I just wanted to be their friend. But they were very naughty. They called my mother Holly, her first name, instead of Mrs. Claus. When they asked about the garage, I told them not to go inside. I swear I did. But they didn’t listen. They said if I took them inside, they would be my friend. I told my dad, and he said that it was time for them to head home. The next morning, nobody talked to me, and the name-calling only got worse. When I got home, I asked my dad if I could have another friend like Elsie. She was still my best friend. But maybe the kids were right; I was really lonely.

At school, I made a couple of new friends. They weren’t like the other kids; they were nice. One of my friends is Joy; she is really funny. One time, she said my dad looked like Santa Claus because of the beard and the name, Nicholas Claus. She asked me to put in a good word for her. I liked playing with Joy because she makes me laugh. She and Elsie are good friends too. She even told me I could come over to her house sometime to swim. My mom and dad said I should wait until summer.

When it was a month called July, my parents drove me to Joy’s house. Her house was ginormous, and her pool was even bigger. Her mom said it was six feet deep! We splashed in the pool all day. Eventually, we had to go inside so we wouldn’t get sunburned. But her house was just as hot as it was outside. Our house is usually cooler because of the “cooling unit” that Dad said he installed in the garage. Sometimes, if I stand too close to the garage door, I can feel the air. It is really cold. Dad always wears his puffy red coat when he goes to work in the shop. I don’t know why he doesn’t just turn the air off.

But two weeks ago, something really strange happened. Joy and I were having a sleepover in my room when we heard some really loud noises downstairs. We decided to go down and see what was making all that noise. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, it was really dark, and we were getting a little scared. When I turned on the light, I felt something really close to me. When I opened my eyes, I saw what looked like a horse’s paw, but it had two giant brown toenails growing out of it. I screamed, and we ran upstairs as fast as we could.

When we reached the top of the stairs, we turned around and slowly looked back down. The creature had ginormous sticks coming out of its head, and it was covered in brown fluffy fur. It looked really scared though. I decided to be brave. I went down the stairs one at a time and gave it a big hug to make it feel better. It was soft but really cold. When I hugged it, some soft white snow fell off its back. It must have gotten into the freezer. Sometimes when I open the freezer door, I see snow inside it too.

I was still petting it when my dad rushed in. He said he heard us scream. He didn’t seem too surprised to see my new friend. When he finally noticed, I thought my friend would need a proper introduction. So I made sure to look him in the eye when I said, “Dad, this is Emma, my new horse.” He laughed, and we all giggled for a second. He said that Emma was really a boy reindeer and his real name was Dasher. Dasher seemed really glad to see my dad, and I think they are friends too.

Dad said that Dasher was visiting from his home at the North Pole. It was a good thing that the shop was nice and cold so that Dasher could be comfortable while he stayed with us. We said good night to Dasher and went back to bed. But when we woke up in the morning, Dasher had already gone home. Joy, Elsie, and I all miss him; I think my dad does too.

I had a sleepover with all of my friends the day after Dasher was gone. Joy and I told them all about Dasher, but they didn’t believe us. They said that reindeer don’t appear during summer, even to visit their friends. But Joy and I will always know that he was there. I asked my dad when Dasher would visit again, and he said he was very busy but would make time soon.

It was a long time before I heard about Dasher. But the day after I asked my dad when he was coming again, I heard a noise downstairs. It sounded the same as when Joy and I first found Dasher. I slowly crept out of my room and down the stairs. But I couldn’t find Dasher anywhere. I even called his name, but he didn’t answer me. I started to head back upstairs, but then I saw something weird. There was a white light underneath the garage door. If that’s where he stayed last time, he would have to be in there. I know Dad said never to go in there, but I had to find my friend.

It took all of my strength to open the heavy door. When I finally got it open, a really cold wind gave me goosebumps. The room was all white, and the floor was covered with snow. I think this was where Dasher got the snow on his back. I tried to take a step inside, but it was too cold. Dad’s red coat and boots, which are usually at the door, were gone. I knew that if I wanted to find my friend, I would need something warm.

I ran upstairs and grabbed my winter coat Mama got me last Christmas and my pink snow boots. When I came back downstairs, I stepped into the room. It still felt like I was standing in a freezer. When I looked back, I could see the lamps in the living room. They looked warm. Everything was still normal. I wanted to go back inside where it was warm, but I couldn’t leave until I found him.

The room looked small. I couldn’t see any way out besides the garage door. I tried to think of how to get to Dasher, and then I saw something in the snow. There were big footprints, surrounded by some tiny ones. I think they were my dad’s boots and his friends’. If anyone knew where to look, it was my dad, so I started to follow the footsteps. I was walking for what felt like forever. But then I came across a big green door decorated with lights. So I grabbed the handle and began to open the door. I didn’t know that opening it meant changing my life forever.

I have never seen anything like it in my entire life. The room was instantly filled with color. I saw lights hanging on the ceiling, filling the air with greens and reds and yellows. I saw hundreds of familiar faces. They were sitting at the tables making something. I saw millions of toys everywhere. Dolls that looked just like Elsie, tea sets that looked just like mine. The people that were making the toys were short with pointy ears. They were wearing funny costumes, but when I saw their faces, I knew they were Dad’s little friends.

There were Christmas trees filled with decorations everywhere. I looked deeper in the room and saw large tables filled with bows and ribbons where more of Dad’s friends were carefully wrapping each gift. I took a deep breath in the room. That’s when I heard something. The music—it seemed to hold my hand and hug my heart. Something about this place was familiar. The feeling of it was something I have never felt before.

I tried to look at every color, but it was impossible. I felt small in this large room. This was my dad’s shop? Nothing made sense. I looked around for anything else, and that is where I saw him. My father. He was wearing his big red coat, his big black boots, and he was staring right at me. But he wasn’t mad like I thought he would be. When he saw me, he smiled.

He began to walk over to me. All I could do was stand frozen in this familiar place. When my dad had reached me, he wrapped me tightly in a hug. He was so warm. Afterward, he said, “I know this might be overwhelming. There will be lots of time to explain, but first, there is someone who has been expecting you.”

He led me further through the shop. There were clocks ticking all around the room. One of the clocks was bigger than the rest, counting down days, not hours. There were many rooms filled with more of Dad’s friends. There was a room full of mail. One room just had a giant book resting on a table next to a cozy chair.

Finally, he brought me somewhere he called the stable. Inside were more reindeer like Dasher. Each reindeer had their own room with their names written on it. Next to each room was a bucket filled with carrots and peppermint sticks. Dad said I could taste test one of the peppermint sticks.

We passed one room with the name Blitzen; the next was Donner. Each one had a silly name. We passed by a couple more rooms before Dad had stopped. I saw the name; it was Dasher’s. When Dad opened the door for me, Dasher was inside sleeping on a pile of snow. He woke up when I walked closer to him. I gave him a big hug. I had found my friend.

After I hugged Dasher, I thought it would be good to let him finish sleeping. Dad said he wanted to show me something while Dasher slept. We climbed up a big set of stairs. Dad opened a big red door that led to his office. Inside, he had a big desk covered with papers and loose toys. Unlike the other rooms, Dad’s office looked pretty normal. Except for the huge jar of cookies next to his chair.

After I had seen the room, Dad said he had to tell me a secret. I already knew though. My dad was the coolest dad ever, because my dad was SANTA CLAUS. Dad told me some funny stories about all of his friends. He said I was welcome anytime. Mama is even going to make me my own fluffy coat to wear when working with Dad.

I worked with Dad the whole rest of the summer. I even made some more friends. Unfortunately, I couldn’t work with him as much once school started again. Turns out second grade is a lot like first. The kids still fight over who has the coolest dad. But it doesn’t matter, because I know my dad is the coolest by far, always has been and always will be.