Christmas in Dixie

CID1-Christmas in Dixie

Christmas in Dixie

So you live your life to please everyone around you, and sometimes you get so caught up in what others want for your life that your own dreams get lost. That's how it was for me, at least. I guess I can't blame it all on the people around me, but they had a lot to do with the way I turned out.

"Claire please listen to me," Scott said

"No just leave me alone, I don't have anything to say to you," I stated upset.

"Claire please come back in the house where it's all nice and warm. Your family is worried sick about you," he pleaded.

"You can not honestly tell me you didn't see the way they looked at me."

"Claire all I saw was caring people that love you, and you're too stubborn to open your eyes and look. Now please get in the car and let me take you back," Scott stated.

I decided to get back into the car, but still, that's not wear my story begins. It's just a little bit further back. It all began the week before my 25th birthday, which landed in December. You guessed it, the week right before Christmas.

My life wasn't really all I dreamed it would be, at that stage in my life. I was working at this little coffee shop and selling personalized purses on the side. Really more like personalized everything. It wasn't much but it made the paycheck at the end of the month.

But with my family, they wished that I would bring home more than just a paycheck. I was the second child of four kids and it didn't help that my brother had a successful job as a doctor with a gorgeous wife and two kids. He was their pride and joy. Then my other brother was studying to be a lawyer. Finally my sister is beautiful and dating a successful business man. My mother, like most mothers, was overbearing but ten times worse while my father had extremely high expectations. It wasn't all my family's fault, I guess. I think that the combination of all of us just made everyone go crazy on a "who can get the better life" contest, while my parents cheered everyone on.

Anyways, it was the week before Christmas and, like I said, there was extra stress. My mother had planned her annual family Christmas, but this time there was a twist. She had rented a cabin for the whole family. It was her way of getting the family closer together, which tells you where the extra stress was coming from. I was a single twenty-four year-old woman who had done nothing with her life, and had no love life or family of her own. It drove my mother crazy; she was just itching to fix me up with any nice guy she came across. That's when the idea came to me. I would ask my friend Josh to pretend to be my boyfriend. When he agreed to help me the anxiety felt as if it had jumped off my shoulders.

"Anna Claire, are you sure you have everything ready for the trip?" my mother questioned.

"Yes mother," I replied rolling my eyes. I was so thankful that the conversation was over the on so she couldn't see me. Only my mother, and close family called me by my given name. My name really showed my southern heritage.

"Make sure you and your boyfriend leave on time, and did you make sure you could get off work?" she interrogated

"Yes mother. You know I have to work, but I got the morning shift," I answered.

"Well make sure you dress up and do something with your hair. You want to be pretty for him. I can't wait to meet the young man," she teased.

"Mother I can honestly say that he has seen me at my worst, and doesn't care how I look," I argued. It was true.

"Well, still dress up. You want to keep him don't you?" she questioned.

"Okay mother. Well got to go, or I'll be late for work, bye. Give my love to Dad."