In the Connie Willis story “Miracle,” the Spirit of Christmas Present (also known as Chris) has materialized in Lauren’s apartment. He explains that her sister didn’t know what to give her for Christmas, so with the aid of the Maharishi Ram Das, who was instructing her in trance-meditation, she accidentally channeled his spirit out of the Astral Plane. Chris asks her what she wants for Christmas, but Lauren doesn’t have time to think of what she wants right now. As he tours her apartment, he decries her store-wrapped presents, and changes Lauren’s preprinted cards into a Christmas tree growing out of her kitchen floor. Lauren hurries back to her office, where she learns that she’s just missed out on a visit from the dreamy Scott, but she has no time to dwell on such disappointments. Instead, she goes to visit Fred in the Documentation department, as he played the magician at last year’s Christmas party. She doesn’t know him very well, but she was able to drum up a conversation with him last year at the Christmas party. In him she finds a kindred spirit, as he’s the only other person she’s met who agrees with her that “Miracle on 34th Street” is a superior movie to “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
While Fred doesn’t actually know how to do magic, he is intrigued by her dilemma. He takes her seriously, suggests that Lauren call her sister to see if she can banish Chris, and agrees to research what might be involved in exorcising the spirit for her. On the way back to her office, the dreamy Scott sees her, and asks if she can go out with him tonight to help him buy the presents that Santa will hand out to all the office workers at the Christmas Eve party. Unfortunately, not only does she have an unwanted spirit camping out in her apartment, but also Fred has promised to get together with her this evening to help her figure out how to banish him. She suggests that they do it tomorrow night, but Scott can’t: he has a date. How could a day that started out with such promise have devolved into one filled with such complications and disappointments?
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| "Ho ho ho, little office worker! What can Santa do for you? |
That evening, she returns home to find that Chris in her apartment. Not only is he wearing a “Save the Rain Forest” T-shirt, but also he has decorated the tree in her kitchen with handmade, biodegradable ornaments created by the Yanomamo Indian from byproducts of the Brazilian rainforest. He stands ready to give her a present, but until she knows her heart’s desire, he can’t leave. Chris vanishes when Fred arrives. In addition to the tree, Chris has replaced her preprinted cards with ones printed on recycled paper using vegetable inks. The cards bear this heartwarming message:
“In the time it takes you to read this Christmas card, eighty-two harp seals will have been clubbed to death for their fur. Happy Holidays.”
Unfortunately, Chris has also changed the video for Fred from “Miracle on 34th Street” into “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
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| Our Glorious Season of Excess |
I’m not an environmentalist, nor am I advocating that we share his taste in Christmas cards. I’m not even against all the wrapping paper and excess packaging associated with our annual festival of gift-giving. I love driving around on December evenings, wasting gas as my wife and I look for the ultimate electricity-consuming outdoor decorations. But perhaps Chris has a point. If we’re going to use extra energy and utilize more materials that will get dumped into the landfills after the holidays, perhaps we should take a moment to remember that we are all stewards of this planet. As we indulge in this glorious season of excess, perhaps we should consider how we might make our lives less wasteful during the rest of the year. Perhaps it’s not big thing—maybe it’ll just be one small act that others will see as inconsequential—but every effort counts. After all, what better gift to give the next generation, than a planet in at least as good a shape as the one that we have been entrusted with?
Miracle and Other Christmas Stories by Connie Willis, is available from Bantam Books.
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| "Okay, I'll read you 'Miracle' again." |
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