There I stood. We had just sung "Silent Night" together and five pairs of expecting eyes followed every move I made, because now it was time to distribute the parcels. As many of you will know, I have got five children: Adam, Bertha, Cecilia, David and Emil. This order ist strictly alphabetical, nothing else, but I find it easiest to think of them in that order. It has nothing to do with age, though. But, talking about age, there are 2 years between each and every of my children. I had bought a present for everyone. As an average I was prepared to spend 20 dollars, and I managed to do that exactly on the dime, but there was a difference of 2 dollars between each present. Finally I had wrapped them nicely into different coloured paper.

Now I had taken the green parcel from under the Christmas tree and horrorfilled I saw that that little paper, on which the name was written, had fallen off. The kids started becoming impatient, what should I do? I tried to remember, but there were just a lot of thoughts running through my mind:

I had payed 18 dollars for Emil's present. My 6-year-old was to have the red parcel. Cecilia should have the doll, a nice one, which could say "Mama". Adam is already 14 years old, oh my God, how time goes by.... The board-game was in the white parcel. The magnifying glass for the stamp collection was the cheapest present, even if I thought that it was rather costly - but then, it had an included light.... Adam was going to have a CD, that would mean a lot of noise again, because he wouldn't use the earphones he got last year, of course. The first letter in the name of my 12-year-old was only one away from the reciever's of the yellow parcel - whatever that had to do with solving my problem.... The present for the 8-year-old had cost 22 dollars. The first letter in the name of my only teenager is one off from the coming owner's of the blue present. The book was to the 10-year-old. The price of Cecilias present was dead on average. The most expensive present was to the one whose name started with a letter one away from that of my 12-year-old.

But by now I had found out who was to have the green parcel. Have you?

© Bernhard Kauntz, 1999

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