Guess I should back up a minute and touch on your first Christmas. Seeing as we arrived in December, when we went into Neu Ulm, the city where the Army Base was situated, we literally entered into a fairy tale. This was the land of fairy tales, and the Christmas aura seemed to magically merge with that. Even entering the streets was like living in a book of make believe. Going into the stores and seeing toys and clothes and all manner of delights that were so different from anything American we could ever imagine was a sensory feast.
But we had no money, and I mean no money. An Army Private back in the day could hardly afford air to breathe, much less a family to feed.
Grandma Mudgie, our fairy godmother, had sent gifts for you to put under the tree. Problem was, we had no idea how we could get a tree. Would it be Christmas without one. And what to get for our precious little gift from heaven?
As it turned out, at the last minute we found a tree at a lot that was closing, for a dollar or two. We popped popcorn and made garlands to decorate it with. That was it. And we called it perfect. Dad arranged to pull guard duty and KP for some of the single GIs who could afford such extravagance. So he was gone for Christmas Eve, but joined us later Christmas Day. And Santa brought you a baby doll and beautiful heirloom German bassinet for her. Fröhliche Weihnachten!, Fröhliche Weihnachten!, Best Christmas ever!
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