christmas gift

MorgueFIle March2020 7ddd67d4e32d3a43dd30410548fcc7f1

i grew up in a remote area of southeastern utah, near the goosenecks of the san juan. this was ninety years ago. we were pretty much a self-sufficient family except for occasional trips to the reservation general store. we did have a sears catalog. everyone in the family peered into it at one time or another, us kids dreaming of the toys we saw there, mom and dad the tools and appliances and fabrics. Mostly we all just looked.

my best, most favorite, most anticipated present on christmas morning every year was the orange each of us received in our stocking. so sweet, so strange, so delicious. but one year the orange in my stocking was much larger than usual and yellow.

mom explained it was a grapefruit, not so sweet as an orange but she’d cut it in half and sprinkle some powdered sugar on it. we had to carve all the little segments free with a paring knife before eating them one by one with a spoon.

It was different but still magical.


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