The tree was cut down and brought inside on the day before and it was decorated on the Christmas Eve. Usually Ken and his little brother Veli were in charge, and therefore the tree never was really beautiful.
Nowadays Ken thinks that killing a tree just for the sake of a couple of days is a horrible waste. So he brings the tree in already in the late November or earlu December.
- Veli!!!! Don’t throw the dice on the floor!!!! You do it on purpose!!!
- Hiiiihiiihhiiiiiiiiii! Pick it up, Ken!
- Boys! Go play outside! You’re getting on my nerves!
The best part of the dinner for Ken and Veli was that they got to drink Coca Cola instead of milk! Just think about it! Soda with dinner!
The worst part was waiting for the parents to finish their plates, once, twice, three times… This was the only dinner during the whole year when kids had to stay still until everyone had finished eating.
But the waiting for the Santa was nerve wracking!
The dreadful old geezer scared the hell out of Veli every time and Ken tried to calm his little brother down.
Mom never told Ken who the guy inside the costume was.
- It was the real Santa Clause, she said even when Ken was already an adult.
Even though Ken’s family was quite poor, Papi always made sure that there was a lot of gifts for the kids. It was his way of showing his love for them.
These days in his 40's Ken thinks that it´s insane to teach children first to be afraid of the Santa (Have you been good?) and then to be greedy and wait for tons of toys.
- Not even in my wildest dreams!
- It’s only second hand, Papi said apologizingly, but Ken didn’t mind. Now he could watch whatever he wanted in his own room, when Papi was watching sports or Veli’s six o’clock kids’ show was on.
Back to the present day...