When they got back to the boxes, she asked Olivia, “Which one should we open first?”
Olivia stood, playing with the tulle of her tutu. “This one,” she said, pointing at the largest of the boxes.
Carrie dragged the scissors along the taped seam and popped open the top flaps of the box, revealing the Christmas greenery she’d ordered. She pulled it out, cut off the cardboard wrapping and allowed it to fall loose in her hand. Then, like an enormous spruce feather boa, she tossed it around Olivia’s shoulders.
“Oh!” Olivia said, spinning around and rustling the greenery with her fingers. “I love this! What’s it for, Carrie?” She unwrapped it from her neck and spread it out on the floor, her hands getting lost in the bunches of greenery.
“It’s going to go on the stairway banister,” she said, unable to hide her grin.
“Can I keep some of it?”
“If we have any left, you may.”
David reached in and pulled out a set of window candles. “Where do these go?” he asked, inspecting the plug at the end.
“David, can you dig around in the box and see if you can find any little light bulbs? You’ll need those for what you have in your hand. That’s a pair of window candles. Does your mommy put up window candles?”
“No,” he shook his head and reached into the box again. “Is this it?”
“Hmm, that looks like it may be a set of ornaments. Try again.”
“I miss Mommy,” Olivia said, suddenly very still. Her hands were by her sides, her face somber. “When can we go home?”
Carrie kneeled down in front of Olivia. “I’m sure you do miss your mommy. You’ll get to see her in a few weeks,” she smiled for Olivia’s benefit. David walked over, still holding the window candle, and stood next to Olivia. It was almost protectively, as if he were trying to shield his sister from her own worry.
“I miss it when she tucks us in at night,” Olivia said. David nodded in agreement.
“Well, you’re being very brave,” Carrie acknowledged. It must be hard for them, she thought, having to spend Christmas with a virtual stranger, their father too busy to spend any time with them, their mother away. As an adult, Carrie understood that kind of loneliness, and she felt for the children. They were too young to feel like that, especially when their father could relieve them of it in a second if he’d just pay more attention to them. She wondered what their mother was like. Did she play with them? Did she do things, take them places? Quietly, still thinking about the children, she helped David unpack the rest of the Christmas decorations. Carrie was glad that she could be there for them so that she could try to ease their fears if they needed her. They shouldn’t be worrying, she thought. They should be enjoying Christmas.
A few minutes had passed when she looked back at Olivia. She’d covered the post of the banister with the greenery, using almost all of it, and wrapping it so tightly that the post wasn’t even visible.
“I’ll help you get the rest up in a minute, Olivia. You’re doing great.”
“Is this right?” she asked.
“You know, it looks lovely, but I may have to use some of it to do the rest of the balcony. The store didn’t send enough to make it as nice as you’re doing it. I’ll help you thin it out in just a second. Let me get David some light bulbs so he can test these lights for me.” She reached into the box and pulled out the light bulbs. “Here we go,” she said, screwing one into the candle that David was holding. “Let me plug it in for you and then you test the switch. How about that?”
David puffed his chest and looked around, obviously happy with the task he’d been given. With a very focused expression, he held a candle, setting down the other, and turned the switch. “This one works,” he said in his best grown-up voice. “Let me try this one now.” His little fingers fumbled a bit with the switch but he got it on. “This one works too.”
“Fantastic. Maybe you can start standing them up against the wall there,” Carrie pointed to the wall closest to him. “We’ll know that those are the ones that light up just fine. Good work, David.” He gave her a solemn nod and went back to unwrapping more window candles.
“You know, your grandma and grandpa will be coming in a few days. We’ll have to get the house all Christmassy for them,” Carrie said, trying to make a little conversation as she carefully unwound Olivia’s greenery.
“Is there a Christmas tree in that box?” Olivia asked. “It’ll be awfully small.”
“No,” Carrie chuckled, “I thought we’d take your daddy with us to get a tree.”