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Contemporary "I am so impressed by all your donations. This is an incredible turnout. It's almost twice the amount we had last year!" As Miss finishes talking, I finally sit back down. Pens given back, register taken, dates written down, all the cards signed... I think that's everything. The five tables are brimming with gifts. Hairbrushes, lotion, fidgets, puzzle books, chocolate, hats, colouring pencils, you name it. It's amazing how 70 kids can give so much when the world

Contemporary They will be torn apart by a silly argument, spiralling from their childhood. Though they will have been close, a single thought will rip them part, sending them to different countries, so they'll never stumble upon each other again. It's a shame, really, because they will have had so much fun together. But their love will be blinded by childish grudges. Mrs Thorne will keep touch with her parents, who’ll be the best grandparents you could imagine. They’ll spoil

Contemporary Zih án wanders through the streets of the marketplace, staring at the flashing lights, holding her best friend's hand. They look fo r t he píngguǒ. Apples: the peace fruit. Zih án is one of the few who celebrate Christmas, though not so much from a religious point of view. In China, Christmas is more of an addition to the New Year, and not much of a celebration. It's a great time to sell stuff, though, as her Uncle does in their local area. There are hundreds of

Contemporary Scene 1: The School. Christmas Play. 2025 Daz, Tuck, Bob, and Wendy, along with the rest of their class, are shuffling onto the stage, ready for their annual Christmas Play. This is their last one, so they want to make sure it shines, but Bob is nervous that he'll forget his lines, and Daz is already embarrassed by his mum standing and cheering. Daz ducks behind Wendy, who has everyone's lines ready to prompt, in case something goes wrong. Wendy: Right! Let'

Contemporary My favourite part of Christmas might be blasting Christmas music at full volume and screaming the words at the top of my lungs. It's beautiful how you can get lost in the rhythm or ask anyone to finish the lyrics of a Christmas classic. And I love to play music. It's magical how I can tap my fingers on a piano or pluck the strings of a guitar and create a melody. Only those who love music will experience the frustrating joy and wonderful fury towards instruments

Contemporary. Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday School. Attend Bob's school play. Go to London!!!!! Visit Tina's Christmas concert. Holiday! Drop Millie off at swimming. Hand in long-overdue history project. Pack for holiday. Go shopping. Wrap gifts. School (again). Do that thing I promised someone last week, but completely forgot. And figure out what it was. Oh, yeah. And school. Catch up on everything I missed when I was in London. "Ah! I forgot my philosophy reading

Freshly baked cookies. Mmmm. You can just imagine it. Sitting on the table, greeting all those who live in the house. The smell of sugar wafting in the air, kissing you sweetly on the cheek. Chocolate chip, sugar cookies, take your pick. But I'm making gingerbread. I'll first buy a gingerbread house-making kit, but whip up an extra batch of icing, because the kits never give you enough. I would make the flat gingerbread pieces myself, but every time I try, the house looks mor

Non-fiction The colours of Christmas date even back to Pagan and Celtic traditions. Here, we meet The Holly King and The Oak King. The Holly King ruled the winter, his power strongest at the solstice, before being taken over by the Oak King, who would proceed to rule over the warming months. They would, in myths, fight for control, and would rise and fall during the solstices, not in a battle of good and evil, but of light and dark, life, death and rebirth. The Winter Solstic

Contemporary There'll be a young couple; their names are irrelevant. Sat down at the kitchen counter, they'll read their books, distantly listening to the news. She will be reading a contemporary romance, of course, set at Christmas. He'll be reading something smart, maybe about economics or business, because he'll promise his future wife that they'll be rich one day. That'll spark a debate. No, a 'debate' won't be the right word. More like a... consultation? Of their dreams.

Contemporary “What are you going to ask for this year?” Mum leaned over Daisy, whispering in her ear softly, a gentle smile on her warm face. She could recognise the Christmas smile; it meant that she and Fred were being good this year, and that she was relieved that no one, including their old cat Cookie, had tried to eat the Christmas decorations. Daisy also recognised the question. It's the same question every year, without fail. And every year she knew the answer.  She wo

Contemporary Within a snowy plain, where no creature dare stir, lay an abandoned hotel. It sat, sad and melancholic amongst piles of white goodness that wouldn’t clear until Spring. The brick walls held firm, despite the paint slowly chipping off, making the sign hardly visible. It was just as well, because no one had visited the hotel for over a decade, because a rumour had spread that it was overgrown with poisonous weeds.  Well, never mind the rumours. Even if they had eve

Non-fiction Oh! History! I love this one! So... diverse and magnificent! But this his-story (see what I did there?) won't be your cut-and-dry textbook. For today only, I have hired Sir Chrystamasasaurus (don't laugh at his name! He's sensitive!) to show you how Christmas came to be. And remember! Don't laugh at his name... "Sir Chrystamasasaurus. Good to meet you. I'm not here to dilly-dally, so I'll do your introduction for you." He takes your hand, shaking it quickly and fi

Contemporary The Orphanage. 1990. Mikaela, Andrew and Alexandra sat on the couch. "At least someone is getting a Merry Christmas." Andrew huffed. Yeah: Zelana. She got chosen, but none of them were surprised; she kept good care of herself, was smart, and clearly had big things to do in life. It was impossible to show these things to the people who came in and eyed them like vultures, trying to determine if you were the 'best' fit. But Zelana managed to break that curse. Alex

Contemporary "A... rock?" I grimace at Charlie, who is smiling his foolish grin, looking at me expectantly. The rock is the size of my palm, painted with a few strokes of gentle blue, and definitely not a disappointment. I clear my throat, readjusting the Christmas lights of the tree. "Thank you." I'm unable to make my voice above a whisper. Why did I expect something to change this year? He was an incredible gift-giver that first Christmas we spent together. I got a beautifu

Non-fiction. A 'story' about stars (this is more of a tale/description). Hmmm.... what could this be about? I hear you asking. This is my non-official application for stars to be considered the #1 symbol. Not that some symbols are superior to others, but... hearts are definitely not numb er #1 in my book. Yes, I love a good heart, but it's curved and weird to draw. A star is super easy. You have that little trick you learn when you're little, and feel so proud of yourself

Contemporary "Mum?" Kieran shivered as he was wrapped in his mother's scarf, and Tom was wrapped into his Dad's. Tears glistened Mum's eyes, but her smile stayed strong, even as her voice faltered through the gentle, "Yes, my boy?" The twins huddled between their parents, hiding their faces into their thin clothes. Kieran continued, blocking Tom's ears with his gloved hands, "We're not going home are we?" They were waiting for their car to be inspected, to see if they'd be on

Contemporary The family never had much. That has to be stated, before you can understand this story. This is a story of how to give, when you don't even have enough for yourself. For the last few years, it had been just Stanley and Dad. Even before Mum left three years ago, their wealth hadn't been plenty. Now, at his school, a Secret Santa was being hosted. It's a great concept, in theory, but in Stanley's opinion it just adds stress to everyone's lives. He tried his best to

Contemporary Now, I need to let you know we rarely buy many new Christmas decorations. We love to keep our old ones, and build our collection through our memories. But this year is different. It's our cousin's first Christmas, and we want to make it extra special, so while we're out Christmas tree shopping, we're also looking for the perfect bauble or decoration to gift her, so she can also make life-long memories. I had such a decoration, and so did my sister. Mine was — no,

Fantasy There is a word in German which I want to tell you about: Vorfruede. It’s one of those ‘untranslatable’ words, which encapsulates the “joy on anticipation”. It literally means before (vor) joy (fruede). I think you can tell where this is going. Throughout the month of December, I hope we’ll bring about Vorfruede, by exploring the meanings of Christmas one at a time, from the 1st to the 25th of December. Now, I have to go through some of the maintenance before we can c