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knew it, it was time to start decorating for the holidays. I ventured into the season with an eagerness and impatience that confounded me because it was unmatched by any previous holiday season of my young life.
    Even then, as a boy of ten, I was puzzled by my anticipation, since I’d stopped believing in Santa Clause and there wasn’t really anything special I wanted under the tree.
    Nevertheless, each morning I woke with a quiet excitement that simmered in my body. With tremendous care, I peeled open another tiny window on my Advent calendar. At night, I stared at the calendar’s nativity scene with fascination until I drifted off to sleep.
    There were no more nightmares after that.
    When Christmas Day arrived at last, my brothers, sisters and I woke at dawn to giant white snowflakes floating buoyantly down from the sky. I remember feeling mesmerized and strangely euphoric as I watched them from my bedroom window.
    Later that morning—after we finished opening gifts and had stuffed ourselves with pancakes, bacon, and egg nog—my mother received an unexpected phone call.
    I don’t know how, but I knew it was something important. Something momentous . I could tell by the way she set her coffee cup down on the kitchen counter and turned quickly toward me.
    “It’s Mrs. James,” she said with an unsettling urgency. “She’s calling from Massachusetts General Hospital.”

Chapter Twelve

    Despite the fact that it was Christmas morning and we were expected at my grandmother’s house for turkey dinner at 4:00, my mother hung up the phone and told me to get dressed.
    “Why?” I asked, feeling almost afraid to hope.
    “Because we’re driving into the city to see Riley and Leah.” Her whole face lit up with a smile. “And their new baby sister!”
    My eyes opened wide. “Really?”
    “Yes!” She moved closer to hug me. “Mrs. James had the baby at daybreak this morning and she’s doing very well. The kids are with her now and she said they miss you, especially today. They practically begged her to call us.”
    I missed them, too, because Riley, Leah and I had known each other since we were toddlers. We always got together every Christmas morning to play with our new toys.
    “When can we go?” I asked.
    “Right now,” she replied. “But we’ll need to leave soon if we’re going to make it back in time for dinner.”
    I immediately went to my room to get dressed.
    o0o
    Because it was Christmas, there was no traffic on the roads, which enabled us to reach the hospital in record time. According to my new stopwatch—a special gift from my grandmother—it took us exactly forty-three minutes to travel from door to door.
    “What a perfect Christmas Day,” Mom said as we got out of the car and looked up at the sky. Fat snowflakes had begun to fall again and everything in the city was covered in white. I felt like I was standing inside a snow globe.
    “I can’t wait to see Riley,” I said as I reached for the gift bag in the back seat. The gift, however, was not for him, but for the new baby. Since there were no stores open to purchase anything, I’d suggested that we re-wrap the soft green bunny I’d received from my aunt that morning.
    Not that I didn’t appreciate the gift. It was cute and cuddly with floppy ears, but weren’t bunnies meant for girls?
    My mom felt it would be a nice gesture, so I called my aunt and explained the circumstances. She agreed it was a nice idea.
    A short while later, we stepped off the elevator on the neo-natal floor and asked to see Mrs. James. Before the nurse had a chance to reply, I heard the familiar sound of Leah’s voice, calling to me.
    “ Josh! ”
    I turned, and there she stood at the end of the long corridor wearing a white sweater-dress that sparkled under the florescent hospital lights. Her long brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she’d sprouted a few inches. I was stunned by how grown up she appeared.
    How was it possible that this girl I’d