Franklin the Fluffapotamus was all the rage in my classroom this year. First, Eli brought it in for show-and-tell. He struggled to drag in a big brown cloth bag; it had pink and purple coily fur that got caught in the zipped-zipper peaking out. All day, people bugged him about showing us early and we begged Mrs. Whinney to change show-and-tell to be before lunch rather than after, but she wouldn’t budge! Rules are rules, and we follow them no matter what! she’d scold, while hurrying us to our seats. I couldn’t help but stare at the large, strange bag– everyone did. It was almost as if it had us in a trance and was shining in a glittering light that made it impossible for us to not gaze at it. At that point, Mrs. Whinney had to hide it in her cluttered broom closet that always stayed locked.
By show-and-tell most people had forgotten about the strange bag and began bragging about all of the toys and knick-knacks they brought in for show-and-tell. But I stayed entranced, day dreaming about what could possibly be in the bag. It was my turn, and I still thought about the bag. I wanted to give my spot up for Eli since he’s always last during show-and-tell, but already knew my teacher would tell me no. I made sure to go fast. I pulled out my parents’ matching, glittering Christmas brooches and quickly told them a silly story about how they accidentally lost them during a White Elephant party, and scurried to my seat. When it was Franklin’s turn, he waited for Mrs. Whinney to unlock the door and pull out the mystery object, struggling to squeeze its fluff out of the doorframe that was smaller than she was.
He stood in front of the class like a superhero. Everyone who once daydreamed, doodled, and conversed during show-and-tell were now straight-faced and listening to his every word. Everyone’s eyes gleamed and glowed with joy while he spoke about how his older cousin from out-of-town brought him the expensive gift when she moved to a different country for a work-study. It was a large, purple and pink furred hippopotamus that stood at almost 3 feet and had a large toothy grin that made him look silly and cute at the same time. He had small, printed-on yellow sparkles which laced his skin just like how snow fall did on my long, brunette hair. It was amazing. I stared at it in complete admiration. When it came time for questions, I couldn’t take my eyes off the plush. I asked the most important question out of everyone. I didn’t ask him who got it for him, or how long he had it: I asked where had gotten it. He responded with the fanciest toy factory in town, Toy Castle.
Ever since that day, I begged my parents for it. The day I came home, I bored my momma with stories of how soft it was and how it was so big, Eli could almost ride his stuffed friend. At every family gathering since that October day, I pestered my Gramma and Grandpa, and all of my aunties and uncles for the toy. At Thanksgiving, I made sure to make it apparent that Franklin the Fluffapotamus was the only thing I wanted to see from them on Christmas morning. I didn’t even care if they pooled all of their money together and Franklin was the only thing I got for Christmas – OK I did actually care about that. Maybe Santa will bring it to you for Christmas! They’d all joke, while shooing me away to resume their boring adult conversation from before. This was not a joke to me. This was a very serious matter and the fact these adults did not see that was appalling to me.
“Why can’t I just get my present, Kiki?! It’s not fair, just because I’m a kid doesn’t mean I don’t know what I want!” I’d whine to my baby sister, who just gooed and played with her spit and feet in return. “Could you get me the toy?” I asked, out of options. She smiled brightly, her eyes gleaming just as mine did that day, until she spit up her bottle all over my nice clothes. I screamed and ran to my momma and daddy, hoping that this was enough ground to be seen worthy of the toy. They laughed while cleaning me up, going on about how I used to do this all the time, but I didn’t believe her. I complained to Momma about how it wasn’t fair that I couldn’t get the toy and felt angry that my friend could get one, but I couldn’t.
Soon Christmas came around, and I couldn’t wait to receive my gift. It was my family’s turn to host for the family, and I couldn’t wait to see who got me my big present. I rushed to wake my parents up before the sun even rose, and begged to open the gifts waiting eagerly for me downstairs. They laughed and made me wait until after Kiki woke up and we ate breakfast. I made sure it was all done before 7 a.m. I ran right past my letter from Santa, and went straight for the biggest present under the tree. It was in a large box, almost taller than me, and wrapped in the special paper that only Santa uses. But something wasn’t right. The name swirled in dark ink didn’t have my name on it. It had Kiki’s. I rummaged through all of the wrapped toys, tossing the paper encasing them all around, searching endlessly for the toy. I never found it. Kiki never opened her gift either, which I found it stupid for her to even get a gift that big because she was just a baby. I had to wait until 2 p.m. for my big family to come to my house. On their way in, I made sure to receive my present from them and shake it around to see if the huge stuffed animal could fit in a 4×6 box. I had no fun at the party when I realized that no one had the toy waiting for me, and no one cared that I was so sad when I didn’t receive it.
By the time everyone left, I felt like crying, and hurriedly brushed my teeth to get the night over with. I walked to my room slowly, my head clung to the ground as I approached my bedroom. The light wasn’t on, but something in my room glowed against the streetlights shining through my windows. I wondered what it was. As I walked into the dark room, I saw Franklin the Fluffapotamus standing tall on my bed, with a note sitting next to it. I jumped from the doorframe to my bed and quickly opened the note, while dusting off carrot and cookie crumbs, and read what was scribbled inside. Dear Kaleb, I hope you are reading this note and are happy with your toy. You have been such a good boy this year like keeping good grades in school and helping your parents with Kiki. You should be very proud of yourself. Let Franklin be a reminder to you that your parents love you very much and that you should always try your best at everything you do. As I finished reading the note – and Momma and Daddy came to tuck me in – I looked out of my window and noticed a gleaming, glittering dust floating in the air from my window.
Since then, I’ve always believed in Santa and his magic. I will always do my absolute best to support those around me and uplift my community, while also getting a good gift at the end of the year.
