The Worst Gift I Ever Received

I am taking part today in Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop.

Prompt 4. Best or worst gift you’ve ever received.

It was the Christmas season of 1983, the year Cabbage Patch Kids were so hot people were fighting each other for them. I had just turned 13,
but I thought they were so cute and I wanted one and so did my best friend “Jennifer”. My parents knew I wanted one but were not so optimistic. They just weren’t the types to fight the crowds for a doll.

But one day under the tree there was a wrapped box that could easily have fit a Cabbage Patch Kid. Jennifer had a similar box under her tree too. “Your parents got you a Cabbage Patch Kid!, she said. I told her I wasn’t sure because my younger brother had a package similar in shape and size. “Maybe they got him one too!”

The guessing frenzy continued until Jennifer and I were convinced that the box held a doll. I could hardly wait until Christmas morning!

When the day arrived my brother and I saved our biggest boxes for last. I wondered what he or she would look like. We opened our gifts and they were…sleeping bags!Sleeping bags??? This made absolutely no sense because we weren’t even campers! I stonily thanked my parents for my presents.

Then the phone rang, it was Jennifer, screaming that she had received a boy Cabbage Patch Kid. She was describing him to me and smelling that sweet baby smell the dolls had back then. “Did you get one?”, she asked. I told her no and told her what I did receive. She told me she was sorry but she couldn’t help talking about her gift. The tears rolled down my face as she went on and on.

Looking back, I guess I felt that Jennifer’s parents loved her more because they were willing to do anything to make her Christmas wish come true. And I know I am the type to go crazy to get my child what he wants for Christmas.

It all seems kind of silly now. Eventually I would wind up with SEVEN Cabbage Patch Kids. Currently I am cleaning up some now and getting ready to donate them. Maybe I can make some little girl or boy happy this Christmas, even though it isn’t the hottest toy of the year!

Photo credit: nameberry.com

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About mamasick

Emily Cullen is a pen-name. I suffer from chronic illnesses and diseases which include Bipolar Disorder, Asthma, Diabetes and Fibromyalgia. I had battled Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis but there is no longer evidence of me having these diseases and my Rheumatologist has declared them to be "burnt out" of my system. I am separated from my husband, “Grant”. Our son, “Tyler” was born in September of 2006 and suffers from tics and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and is delayed in fine and gross motor skills. In my blog I seek to let sick moms know that they are not the only ones going through this, and to educate people about what can happens when one becomes catastrophically ill. I also strive to break down stereotypes of what a “Welfare Mom” is like. Anything that I have gone through due to being sick, is written on the pages of Mama Sick.

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