knighton

Gifts of Christmas Past

Dec 18, 2007

I was reading over at A Girl and A Boy about memorable Christmas presents, and Leah asks the question, "What was the best gift you ever gave and/or received?"

Well, let me tell you about that.

Nearly a decade ago, I bought Handsome a trench coat for Christmas - about two weeks before the big day, actually. It was long and water-resistant, warmly lined, and had a leather collar. It was (and still is) beautiful. The store wrapped it for me in a huge box with a big ribbon. I hid it under the bed.*

Christmas Eve rolls around, and he's dutifully loading the sleigh for our three-hour trek to our family's houses. It was also one of the coldest Christmas Eve's on Texas record. He carried four loads of luggage and presents down three flights of exposed stairs. And the super-warm trench coat was still in its box, under the bed. The poor man was freezing.

And I could do something about that! So, as he enters the apartment for the final time, I'm beaming in front of the fireplace with a giant box. "I thought you should open this one now," I announce - beaming proudly at the surprised look on his face.

Only, once he tore into the package and pulled out the coat, he was no longer surprised. He looked a little pissed. Oh sure, he loved the coat, but "I could have used this an hour ago. You mean while I was freezing my butt off, you had this here the whole time?!?!"

He still wears the coat, and he loves it. He has used it every winter since then. And, he reminds me every year of what that perfect present cost him.

I still think it's pretty funny.

*It turns out that "under the bed" is a great place to hide things from Handsome. He never looks there. Sneaky, sneaky me.