A son coincidentally gifts his mother a necklace that his father bought her when she was 20. In return, she decides to give him a present worthy of a man.
Carl Jenkins wanted nothing more than to grow up quickly since his father passed away a decade ago. He was an only child, and he lived with his mother, who had to bear the responsibility of feeding and clothing him even though she had been a housewife while her hubby lived.
It was not easy for the woman who had almost no certification, having stopped her education, to start a family with Carl’s father. The man had been a race car driver whose career had been blossoming until an accident claimed his legs and one arm, leaving him technically invalid.
It had not been easy for him to recover from the accident, and most of the money he had made in his successful career up until that point was spent on treatment, so by the time he passed, the family was in dire straits.
Carl’s mom, Judy, had not seen it coming, perhaps she would have chosen to get herself something that would pay the bills, so she was restricted to doing minor jobs to raise her child.
Carl was well aware of her sacrifices, and he wanted nothing more than to grow quickly so he could take the load off her neck.
“When I’m 18, you won’t have to work so much anymore,” he would tell her.
The words encouraged her to do all she could to help them live comfortably. The moment Carl clocked 18, he immediately took up a job at a local cafe owned by a family friend named Mr. Richards.
“I know how hard it will be for someone your age to get a good job which is why I’m hiring you, don’t let me down boy,” Mr. Richards told him.
“I won’t sir, I promise,” Carl said happily and quickly got to work learning the ropes. He was a diligent worker and quick study, so it didn’t take him long to figure out how to do things around the cafe.
Carl would work after school ended rather than go home as he used to before, but he was at the cafe full time when the school closed in the summer.
That summer, he worked his butt off to make money, forgoting having fun with his friends and even limiting the time he spent with the girl he had started a relationship with.
All he did was work and help his mother with menial chores around the house, and so it was until the end of the year approached. When Christmas came, it was difficult for Carl and Judy because they missed his father very much.
Before the man passed, they had always visited Disneyland; they would have fun at ski ramps before returning home to make a feast they invited their neighbors to.
After his father died, Carl and Judy spent Christmas together, but they did not visit their regular haunts.
That Christmas morning, he went to the store and got some groceries from his money to make a feast like they usually did, and after that, he returned home and joined his mother in completing house chores.
Later that evening, after the small feast they had, Carl and Judy settled down near the fireplace and started exchanging gifts. Carl had been looking forward to it because he had gotten his mother something special the day before.
“I’ve got something for you, ho ho ho,” he told her, his throat clogged. It was what his father used to tell her before he presented his gift to her.
“I’ve been a good girl,” she said, equally teary.
It was how she always replied.
At that, Carl handed over the small box to her, and as she opened it, she gasped, and one hand flew to her mouth as though to catch the gasp before it escaped.
Inside the box was a simple but elegant necklace. “Where did you get this?” she asked as she felt the beautiful piece with her fingers.
“I found it at a pawn shop when I went looking for a gift for you,” he said proudly.
“Oh Carl,” she sobbed. “It is the same necklace your father gifted to me when I was 20!”
“What?” Carl asked, stunned. He had no idea.
“Look,” Judy said, turning the back of the necklace to show Carl the words engraved there. It read: “For my lovely Judy.”
“It could not have been cheap,” she said, looking at him with teary eyes. “How could you afford it?”
“You used to love jewelry and I thought I’d get you one so I started saving towards it as soon as I got my job,” he said. Judy smiled and let the tears in her eyes roll down her cheeks.
“You are just like your father,” she said. “He gave this to me after working hard the whole summer when he was 20. It was a pre-wedding gift but I lost it when we were moving to this house with you.”
After putting it around her neck, Judy held out a small box to Carl and revealed that it contained a smartwatch. “But I think you deserve something more as a man, this watch is for a child. You’re a child no more,” she said before standing up to go to her room.
When she returned, she was holding a golden ring and the keys to her late husband’s race car, which had never seen the light of day since the man died.
“I think he would be glad if I gave this to you,” she said, and Carl hugged her fiercely, satisfied with the gift. It was a Christmas they never forgot.