Capturing Christmas

With garland strung about, the lights winking in the window, there seemed to be an air of Christmas cheer based solely on decorations. But this all amounted to the one woman who put it all together. Miss Clara Bismarck, tall for her twenty-two years, had become a teacher. She put in the work to have this private school put in place all of the imagination and glee that came with the holiday season.

“You’re amazing,” Principal Gloria Plimpton remarked. “I marvel at your excellence.”

“Thank you, Gloria,” Clara replied. The principal walked away. Clara found her smartphone. She recorded the scene she just created and tried to publish it to all of her social networking sites. It didn’t work. Her phone battery depleted and she had to take measures that appeared primitive to daily life in the twenty-first century. She walked in the light snow to the nearby pharmacy for a disposable camera. Would this work?

“Yeah, we don’t carry those anymore,” store clerk Thurston Bly remarked when Clara asked for one. She discovered a way to keep the spirit going nevertheless. She returned to the school and asked for Gloria’s phone.

“Why do you need my phone, Clara?” Gloria asked.

“Mine died, and I wanted to upload the photos to the Internet for all of the families to see. Maybe we could get some coverage in the Daily Delaware.”

Gloria rolled her eyes and snickered. “I knew hiring you would be a pain. You, Little Miss Perfect. Every student made a passing grade because of you. Every student is headed to the next grade because of you. Your success I resent.”

Clara canted her chin upward. “I’m sorry to hear that you envy me for my virtues.”

Gloria Plimpton gasped. She then turned away as Clara began to chuckle.