A Child’s Christmas! Believe them when They Say What They Will Do.

Christmas Time is usually a joyful time for everyone, especially children. What with the lights, tree, presents, fun, food, fellowship and Christmas Story! Parents usually play a role in ensuring the euphoric feeling children enjoy and often do their best to put their children at ease and make the process a joyous one.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day 1979 though, will go down in history as the worst I have ever had! I was denied the opportunity of warm, fuzzy feelings any child wanted to revel in. My alcoholic, abusive Dad, no doubt still had not come to terms with Mommy “Getting out,” because she eventually got tired and left with us. eight months earlier. Although we still visited him, (including her) maybe for him that was not enough. His earlier threat of “Coming to kill you all tonight,” was not taken seriously by me until he was outside our rented home being a “bug,” to mom and to which I hoped she would completely ignore him and close the window. Dissatisfied, he ended up declaring, “I will be back,” like the evil Arnold.

Sure enough between sleep and wake the heavy blows on the doors and windows pummelled me into frightful action. Like a crazy horse, I bolted over the window sill unto the dark outside to be rescued along with my mom and niece by a neighbour. The other niece and nephews were also rescued and we all cowered in fear, trembling like a leaf beaten by hurricane winds.

However the worst part was venturing back into the house at first light to be greeted by torn, broken, busted and cut up clothes, furniture, and anything else that could have been destroyed. I knew now for certain that if we hadn’t escaped, we would all have been DEAD! For the rest of the day and certainly months ahead, those memories replayed themselves in my memory. No child should ever have to go through what that awful fear-drenched night did to me. When the signs are there and the perpetrators talk their talk, believe them. It can save a lot of heartache and headache, hurt and pain. It may very well save a child and eliminate bad vibes.