The patriarch of the Sandusky family, William (Bill) Sandusky, shares his Christmas experiences with his family and friends in the form of a letter that he emailed.
I hope you had as blessed of a Christmas as we, the Sandusky family, did. We had one of our best Christmases ever, even though our daughters Lightning, Dwerlina, and Tanya couldn't be here with us this year (Lightning's husband had to work, and Tanya and Dwerlina both had to work Christmas Day, as did Stephanie). We exchanged gifts in the early afternoon, after Louie, my wife, came in (she worked as well; she works every other Christmas; she's a nurse), and let me tell you, the excitement of the kids' shrieks and giggles could not be contained. They were soon involved in opening their gifts, and Johnny and Ronee' got a special gift for their birthday (Johnny's was yesterday, the 26, and Ronee' 's was the day before, on Christmas Day, December 25): Johnny got a new game system and some games, and he also got some DVD's of his favorite movies; and Ronee' got a new laptop (her present one is quickly becoming worn out from near constant use!), and then, if that wasn't enough, our friends from Alaska, Jenna Aurora and her husband Michael (their last name is Doucet) stopped in, and they got Johnny a brand new remote-control HUMMER (this one was yellow; the one he had gotten last year--before Kwame' broke it!--was orange), and Ronee' a brand new bedset (sheets, bedspread, pillow cases, and curtains) that had the Northern Lights on the material.
You can only imagine how Johnny and Ronee' reacted when they got these special birthday/Christmas gifts. Johnny was so happy he burst into tears of joy, and Ronee' was soon bebopping around, moving her head, and pumping her fist in the air, going, "YEAH! YEAH! YEAH!" They were quite overjoyed (and that is an understatement!).
But Johnny and Ronee' weren't the only ones who got something totally unexpected or off the wall: our friends, Roberto Sormiento and his wife, M'Buti, got little Kwame', our youngest child, a HUMMER that he could actually get in and ride; and when he saw that, he was soon boinging around like a little jackrabbit, yelling, "HUMMER, HUMMER! I gotta' HUMMAH!!" He was one very excited little boy! Ronee' and Johnny thought it was cool, but they were soon paying attention to their gifts and staring at them, faces all aglow and mouths hanging wide open with shock and disbelief!
The other kids got some unexpected surprises as well: clothes, cologne or perfume, money, savings bonds, gift certificates to their favorite stores at the mall, free certificates for a free outing at the roller rink and at the local bowling alley, and much, much more, and they were soon trying to outshout and outdo each other in their bragging and showing off their newest treasures. We, myself and my wife, got some nice things too: a man who shall rename anonymous (we know him only as "Joe") gave us a check for over two THOUSAND dollars, and he got Johnny some savings bonds. He also got Johnny a college scholarship to the college of his choice (not knowing that he would probably not live long enough to fulfill that dream; but still, it was a incredibly nice gesture on his part!). We also got a cruise to Alaska, and we got a cruise to Cozumel, Mexico. THAT was totally unexpected, and today, two days later, Louie and I still can't believe it!
The weather matched our happy moods: it was snowing out (not as hard as it had been only days earlier, just snow flurries was all), but we were in the safe confines of our home, and we were (MOSTLY) together. Others weren't as fortunate: there were families seperated by war or financial or weather-related difficulties, and for one reason or another, they could not be together at Christmas. There were also those who were in hospitals, nursing homes, or veterans' homes, and they were often lonely or forgotten. There were also the homeless people to consider, and at the thought of them not having anything to call their own, not even a home, made my heart ache. I was wishing that I could do something to help these unfortunate souls who were just eking by or living way below their means when they definitely deserved better.
There were also families (like mine) who were dealing with the recent passing of a loved ones (in our case, my little niece, Cajun Marie, who was but only six years old; she died of numerous health problems that affected just about every aspect of her young life), and the sight of the Christmas decorations and lights and the strains of "O Holy Night" and "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" only stabbed our hearts, as we were dealing with her death, and we were really not feeling that merry. She died only a few weeks ago (it will be one month on January 4 of next year; she died on December 4, 2004), and we were still feeling the pain and grief quite strongly.
Yet, I was determined to give my "little family" the best Christmas possible, and I think we may have succeeded in doing just that. So on that note, let me wish you and yours the Merriest of Christmases, and try to remember the REAL reason for the Season: the Birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and may your New Years be bright with promise and prosperity beyond your wildest imagination!
I enjoyed this story very much and although the day after did not turn out so well. Christmas was quiet and peaceful with enough food and warmth. Thanks for the write.
What began as Songs of the Angelic Gaze in the summer of 2006 continued the following year as The Bridge of Silver Wings, and developed even further two years after that into The Bridge of Silver Wings 2009. Whether readers describe it as a conversa
I hope you had as blessed of a Christmas as we, the Sandusky family, did. We had one of our best Christmases ever, even though our daughters Lightning, Dwerlina, and Tanya couldn't be here with us this year (Lightning's husband had to work, and Tanya and Dwerlina both had to work Christmas Day, as did Stephanie). We exchanged gifts in the early afternoon, after Louie, my wife, came in (she worked as well; she works every other Christmas; she's a nurse), and let me tell you, the excitement of the kids' shrieks and giggles could not be contained. They were soon involved in opening their gifts, and Johnny and Ronee' got a special gift for their birthday (Johnny's was yesterday, the 26, and Ronee' 's was the day before, on Christmas Day, December 25): Johnny got a new game system and some games, and he also got some DVD's of his favorite movies; and Ronee' got a new laptop (her present one is quickly becoming worn out from near constant use!), and then, if that wasn't enough, our friends from Alaska, Jenna Aurora and her husband Michael (their last name is Doucet) stopped in, and they got Johnny a brand new remote-control HUMMER (this one was yellow; the one he had gotten last year--before Kwame' broke it!--was orange), and Ronee' a brand new bedset (sheets, bedspread, pillow cases, and curtains) that had the Northern Lights on the material.
