sneak peek

When I was young I discovered one of my “talents” is the ability to open gifts without damaging the paper/ribbons, etc. This skill came in quite handy during my teenage years when holiday secrets became just too much to handle. I could open a gift for a sneak peek and restore the wrappings to their original condition with no one else the wiser for it. There was one year that I knew what was in every package under the tree. I was very good…

One year I was babysitting while my parents were away for the evening so enlisted my 4-yr. old brother, Jared, in the “fun activity” to pass the time. We talked about how exciting it would be, how to keep it a secret, all those things a criminal stresses to an accomplice. He was in, so I let him choose the first one. We opened only a few, since we expected my parents wouldn’t be gone too long. The gifts were back under the tree looking pristine when my parents got home. I winked and smiled at Jared as a way to remind him not to fold. But he just fell apart. He spilled the beans about the whole thing; my parents could hardly understand him through his sobbing.

Well, the truth was out and oddly, there was no fallout. My parents weren’t upset by what we had done, they figured it was OK with them if I wanted to ruin the surprise for myself… I comforted Jared and asked what had happened. Apparently he couldn’t handle the guilt any more than I could handle the anticipation. I was sorry I’d wounded his tender spirit.

Somehow the experience cured me of the anticipation woes and since then I haven’t had trouble keeping my anticipation in check. I rarely use those skills anymore, unless I forget to take a tag off or include a gift receipt; and then I don’t feel much excitement, I just think to myself, “Oh, bother; I should have used a gift bag.”