December is my absolute favorite month of the year. I guess that’s because I was born in December and I get double presents at Christmas time. But this Christmas will be different since Dad doesn’t live with us anymore. I can’t help but feel sad knowing he won’t be here. Mom is trying to be extra nice to me because she knows how much I miss Dad. He and I would always go pick out the Christmas tree together, but I guess this year Mom will have to take me.
One evening, Mom and I are sitting around watching a Christmas program on television when the telephone rings. Mom reaches for the receiver and after a few minutes of listening to her conversation, I realize it’s Grandma calling from New Mexico. Mom’s face is very tense, which makes me feel panicky. Then, all of a sudden, the strained look on Mom’s face disappears and she looks more relaxed. When she finally hangs up, Mom turns to me and says, “Maya, that was your grandma. She called to tell me she’s sorry about everything and wants to know if we can fly out there for Christmas. How about it? I think it’s still early enough that we can get tickets. We could fly out during your school break.”
My heart is pumping wildly. “Yes, Mom!” I holler. Then we both start hugging each other and jumping up and down like two crazy people. Mom is so excited that she starts looking for the suitcases while I race to my room so that I can call Juanita and tell her the good news.
The next day, Mom calls her travel agent and arranges our flights to New Mexico. We spend the next two weekends shopping for presents for Grandma and some of my relatives. It’s fun going downtown with Mom because we browse around all the shops and then go to Foster Freeze to get a cone dip. I don’t miss Dad as much now that I’m thinking about spending Christmas with Grandma and all my cousins.
We fly out to Santa Fe on the day before my birthday. When we deplane, Grandma and Tía Lola are waiting for us in the lobby. It makes me feel so happy when Mom and Grandma hug each other. Both Grandma and Tía Lola are crying. When Grandma finally hugs me, she tells me, “Ay, hijita, you’re getting taller, but you’re still too flaquita.” We all start to laugh because Grandma thinks everyone is too skinny.
That evening, Grandma’s house is filled with my aunts, uncles, and cousins who have come over to eat dinner with us. I haven’t seen Mom look this\ happy in a long time. Everyone keeps telling me how tall I am compared to my short cousins. It feels just like old times. The only thing missing is my dad.
The next morning, Dad calls to wish me a happy birthday. He tells me he’s glad that Mom has patched things up with Grandma. When I ask him what he’s doing on Christmas Day, he tells me he’s going to spend it with some friends. I tease him and ask if he means Michelle, but he just laughs out loud. I can tell Dad is feeling happier, and that makes me feel even better. Before we hang up, Dad promises to come visit me during one of his long weekends in January.
My sixteenth birthday turns out to be one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had. Mom drops my cousins and me off at the movie theater and we see the new Christmas movie with Tom Hanks. It’s pretty funny and we laugh a lot. When we get home, Mom orders pizza and we have a pizza birthday party. My cousins tease me because I only eat two pieces, but I tease them back that I don’t want to be chubby like them. Then Grandma surprises me and brings out the birthday cake she baked for me. Everyone sings Las mañanitas and then I make a wish and blow out the candles. I wish that Dad is as happy as I am wherever he is. After we finish eating, I open my presents. My cousins give me a new CD, jewelry, and some new gloves. Mom gives me a new watch, and Grandma gives me some money.
On Christmas Eve, Mom and I spend the whole day helping Grandma make tamales. Next to Juanita’s mom, Grandma makes the best tamales in the world. I think about Juanita and wonder if she’s also helping her mom make tamales. By the afternoon, I am so bored with making tamales that I quit, but Mom and Grandma keep at it until they finally finish.
Later in the evening, all my relatives come over to eat tamales with us. At midnight, we open all our presents and by the time we go to bed, it’s almost three in the morning.
On Christmas Day, we go to church with Grandma and then spend the rest of the day visiting with different aunts and uncles. My cousins think I’m really cool because I’m from California, and they all beg me to spend the night at their houses. If they only knew how stuck-up a lot of people are back home, they wouldn’t think California is so neat.
When the day arrives for Mom and me to go back home to Laguna, I feel sad because I know I’ll miss being in Santa Fe with Grandma and all my cousins. At the airport, as Grandma hugs me tight, she reminds me to take good care of my mom for her. When we board the airplane, Mom is crying, but I can’t help but feel happy that I don’t have to hate Santa Fe anymore.