It was Christmas morning, and I could feel the excitement pulsate through my body like a sugar rush. My eyes popped open; I was alert and wide awake. I had been waiting for this morning to come around again for a whole entire year. I had asked for many things, but what I was really hoping for was the one thing I had internet searched more than 20 times. I had to grow to a whole five foot three inches. I remember my mom’s words like a song lyric,  “I won’t get you one until you stop growing!” The words had stuck in my head like glue. Every year during the winter, I had to fill out the same rental papers at Big Boulder. They ask you more questions than a survey. Boy, were they a pain. I just wanted a snowboard of my own! I was tired of using the resorts snowboards. I wanted something to call “mine.” So that very chilly Christmas morning was when I would find out if the misery would all be over.

I heard the laughter of my parents out in the living room at five a.m. and the smell of coffee brewing. It was the usual time we woke up on that specific day. It’s like a fairy comes the night of Christmas and sprinkles excitement on children while they’re sleeping. I’m always awake before my sisters, so I snuck into their room, peeked at the tree, but wasn’t able to view my side of the gifts. I switched the light on and jumped into Steph’s bed like a bunny rabbit. I shouted, “wake up!” over and over until I saw a sign of awakeness. I did the same to Brittany. They were annoyed at first, but when they realized it was the day of Christmas, the holiday spirit grew amongst them. We begged and begged at the crack of the bedroom door for our mother to let us begin opening presents. She teased us for a few minutes, but then gave in to my innocent baby face. I ran to the other side of the lit-up tree faster than my dogs could tackle me to lick my face for good morning kisses. We each had designated areas for our gifts; oldest to youngest (I was the youngest.) I knocked over a few ornaments on my way over, but I was so thrilled I didn’t even care to pick them up. When I reached my side, I saw many gifts stacked on top of each other, but no sight of a snowboard. Although I was disappointed, it escaped my head when I looked at all of the snowflake wrapped presents that were sitting right in front of me. I opened each one with a “wow, i love it” and a “thank you.” It reminded me of how grateful I am of my family. Christmas isn’t about the presents, it’s about love and spending time with your family. Being thankful for what you already have, and celebrating the birthday of Christ. Most kids are so excited for presents, they tend to forget the true meaning.

Once I finished the overwhelmingly large amount of amazing presents I had received, I moved on to my stocking. It’s always immensely filled with the littlest items: candy, makeup, jewelry, and a stuffed animal to top it. During the process, my dad stopped me halfway through to ask me if I wanted hot cocoa; of course I said yes. He makes the best homemade hot chocolate on the stove and tops it with whipped cream. It’s to die for.

When I glanced over to see what was taking my sisters so long unwrapping their presents, I noticed that they had been given what they wanted; what had been number one on their Christmas lists. They were distracted with their new gifts, they forgot about their stockings. I have to admit, I was very jealous, but I shrugged my shoulders and kept picking things out from my stocking. When my sisters joined me, I saw how happy they were with their new things. A little gray cloud grew above me as I slouched with disappointment. Even my dogs were happier than me. Their tails wouldn’t stop wagging. They got dog bones and toys; they wouldn’t complain even if they could.

I reached the bottom of my stocking and pulled out the last gift. This one sparked my interest. It felt like a tiny box, and when I shook it, it made a peculiar noise. It sounded like little nuts and bolts. Why would I get those? What would I do with them? I then realized my family was staring at me like something was about to happen. With a puzzled expression on my face, I began unwrapping it. When I had ripped every inch of wrapping paper off, I carefully opened the lid of the box. My guess was correct, it was packed with little screws. I gazed up at my parents.

“What is this?” I said.

“What do you mean? It’s what you asked for,” my mom smirked.

My sisters were laughing while I sat there trying to put together the puzzle pieces.

“Do I get a hint?” I asked.

My parents walked away as if I wasn’t talking to them. They completely ignored me. I started to grow furious. Nobody would tell me what was going on. I just wanted an answer.

Finally, when my mom came back, I was incredibly shocked to see a snowboard in her hands. My jaw dropped to the ground and my cheeks flushed with excitement. I couldn’t take my eyes off of it.

“You think you could put it together?” my mom smiled.

I discovered that they had played me the whole time. My whole family was in on the surprise. The screws were a hint to the rest of the present. It was impossible to be angry; I had a brand new snowboard after all. It was white with a purple and blue design and came with white snowboarding boots. I finally received the gift I had dreamed about for years, and I was beyond ecstatic. I was thrilled to take it outfront and board down the snow covered street, but even more excited to take it for a ride down Big Boulder’s slopes. It was the perfect start to Christmas day. Though I was very happy I finally got the gift I have continuously begged for; I was also very thankful.

The day continued with lots of baking and cooking while Christmas music penetrated the air. We all danced around the open fire and watched holiday movies that were on the television. I will never forget that Christmas morning.