A Child's Gift

• Laura Tepe, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2010

The lights danced across the walls, casting shadows over the living room. The marvellous Christmas tree was clothed in silver tinsel, baubles, and bright Christmas lights that twisted around the tree’s branches. The guests, all dressed in splendid attire and smiling proudly at the prospect of being invited to this Christmas Eve party, watched as the joyful children danced around the tree, singing merry carols.
Only one child had separated herself from the party; she had taken herself away, hiding in the corner of the room, where she found refuge in the shadows where the lights did not reach. Eliza was a deaf child who was merely an orphan, and had surely only been adopted into the Highvale family so that the wealthy parents could boast of their sympathy and compassion to such an outcast. This kindness had not continued for very long, though, and poor Eliza was mostly separated from all family events to avoid damaging the family’s reputation of bringing up ‘perfect, respectable and civilized children’, which Eliza was apparently not.
Eliza gazed longingly at the other children who were now standing near the Christmas tree, grinning eagerly up at Mr. Highvale. From where the lonely girl sat, she could just read Mr. Highvale’s moving lips, using her eyes instead of her ears to understand what he was saying. Mr. Highvale announced that each of the children would be given a small gift, and one by one the children stepped up to the host and were given their present. The small bags were tied with a gold ribbon, which, as Eliza could see upon the opening of the gifts, were filled with small lollies. Squeals of delight and cries of laughter broke out from the excited children as they gleefully dug through the bags.
Eliza would once again be the only child not receiving such a gift; every year, her name was never read out. But even though she knew there was no use dreaming of being given such a wonderful present, Eliza somehow could not turn away from the other children, their merriment becoming contagious amongst the adult guests.
The last child stepped up to Mr. Highvale, and was given their bag of goodies, and this was where the gift-giving usually ended, but then Eliza saw the room be filled with a somewhat confusion. Mr. Highvale began looking around, holding up the last bag. Eliza was about to look away, when she read Mr. Highvale’s words. Upon looking twice, she saw that, without fail, her own name was being called out.
Eliza slowly stood up, emerging from the shadows, confused at why her name was being announced considering she had always been ignored or treated like an unimportant outsider at such parties.
Stunned, Eliza watched in complete astonishment as Mr. Highvale smiled and handed the girl who was once called an ‘outcast’ her very own bag of goodies; her first Christmas gift.