Chapter 3 – Tim
Tim was digging through the boxes of Christmas decorations, seemingly searching for something.
"What are you doing, Tim?" Delilah wheeled over to her husband. "Need some help?"
"I'm trying to find that angel candle thingy… you know, the one that spins around from the heat from the candles?" Tim explained as he pawed through another box. "The one that was my grandmother's from a long time ago…"
Delilah opened the box next to her chair, "Yep, the one that Penny says you were so fascinated with that you permanently changed your fingerprint on your left thumb and index finger by grabbing the hot metal rod on one of the angels…"
Tim groaned, "I was barely three, how was I supposed to know that the metal was too hot to handle?" He dug into another box, finding mostly strings of rope lights. "Where did we put the darn thing when we packed up after the last holidays?"
In the ninth box, he found an unopened box of candles for the angel-abra, but no device. "Found the candles we bought a year or two ago, but no luck on the actual thing yet. I should have put it where I would know to find it…"
"You say that every year, Tim," Dee patted his arm and took the box of candles from him to place on the table nearby. "You should have taken Tony's suggestion to put it in its own box or tote and label the container."
"I DID!" Tim grinned at his wife. "Clear red plastic tote with latching top… I think…" He looked around at the piles of boxes and totes of decorations. "Not here, which means it must still be in the garage storage area."
As he opened the door to the garage from the short hallway beside the kitchen, the twins ran to see what he was doing.
"Whatcha doin' Daddy?" Katie sidled up to her father. "Are you getting presents for us inside now?"
"Whoa, Katie-bug. Wait… how do you know about the presents in the garage?" Tim gulped. "I mean.. what presents?"
John stood next to his twin, "It's cool, Dad… we've known about the hiding places in the garage since we were four."
"Um… well don't let your mother know that you know," Tim scratched his head, wondering just how the two had found the hidden gifts, since he put them up on shelves that were eye-level for himself. "Tell you what, though, you can help me find the angel chimes thing. You know, the one with the candles and the rotating angels?"
The kids ran into the garage as Tim continued, "I think it's in a red plastic tote with a latch top about the size of a shoe box. Your mom found the extra candles, but we can't find the angel-abra."
"Is that the one that Grandma Penny tells the story about you burning your fingers?" John grinned at his father, "and how you were fascinated with the shadows on the ceiling."
"I was barely three! And yes, the shadows are way cool on both the ceiling and the walls…" Tim spied the box in question and pointed it out to the kids. "I see it! Who wants to get on my shoulders so we can grab it off the shelf?"
He squatted down so that Katie could get on his shoulders, then moved closer to the shelf as John watched. The boy was secretly glad his sister was the one on Dad's shoulders; he was not much of a fan of heights.
"Got it!"
"Great; I'll get down low again, and you can hand the box to your brother before you climb off my shoulders." Tim knelt instead of squatting to make himself a bit more stable for Katie to climb down.
Back inside, the family worked together to get the house decorated for the holidays, minus the Christmas tree. Early on, Tim and Dee had compromised on setting up the tree on Christmas Eve day, so each year the four McGees spend the morning of December 24th putting up their tree.
As the family enjoyed soup and sandwiches, all four watched the angels spin from the heat of the candles; ding… ding… ding… the chimes tinkled their bright melody as the shadows danced on the ceiling and walls. Dee glanced over at her husband. He was mesmerized and she saw a hint of the wonder-filled three-year-old who accidentally burned his fingers…