Blizzards & Baubles
Although the snow was coming down hard and fast, Milo still had a smile on his face as he made his way into town. He was on a mission. A mission to find the most perfect, the most joyful, the most spectacular Christmas ornament in the whole world. Milo already had the most beautiful tree set up at his home, but after decorating it with lights, tinsel, and a star on top, he couldn’t help but think that something was missing. You see, there was a gap in the tree, the perfect spot to hang an ornament. Milo now just needed to find the right one.
So, he had thrown on his warmest hat and his most Christmas-y shell, and headed out into the village. It didn’t take him long to make it to Merry Bauble Co., his favorite little Christmas shop in town. In truth, Milo had only ever admired the shop window from outside. Today was going to be his first time actually going inside.
A bell chimed as he slid his way inside, and he was greeted by Nicholas, the shopkeeper. Nicholas was a wise old owl, and Milo had heard that he always knew exactly what his customers needed.
“I need an ornament,” Milo told him. “The most beautiful one you have, please. It needs to be absolutely perfect!”
The old owl ruffled his feathers. “Perfect, you say? That’s a tall order.”
“Oh, but please! I’m so close to having the perfect Christmas tree!” Milo pleaded.
Nicholas raised an eyebrow. “Very well, follow me.”
The owl fluttered off his perch and led Milo through the shop, which was surprisingly big. Milo passed rows upon rows of ornaments on display. The shelves were stocked floor to ceiling with ornaments of all kinds: glass baubles, hand-carved wooden figurines, shimmering snowflakes, bells on strings, bells on wreaths, bells on bells, and so much more! Milo smiled at one that looked like a green and red spiral.
Nicholas pointed to each shelf as they passed by, but Milo didn’t see the perfect ornament he was searching for.
“I’m afraid that’s almost all I have,” said Nicholas as they reached the end of the row.
“Please, you have to have more,” Milo begged. “None of these are perfect!”
Nicholas sighed. “Fine, follow me.”
Nicholas led Milo through the store’s back room. There, at the very back of the shop, was one last shelf, stocked with five of the most beautiful glass globe ornaments Milo had ever seen!
“I warn you, Milo, these ornaments are special,” said Nicholas. “They possess an immense power, so I tell you, be careful which one you choose.”
Milo looked at the five ornaments with a sense of supreme wonder.
“I’ll leave you to it for now. Come find me when you’re ready to make your purchase.” With that, Nicholas, swopped out of the backroom, leaving Milo alone with the ornaments.
Milo grabbed the first ornament off the shelf, a brilliant glass sphere tinted with every shade of blue imaginable. As Milo held it in his hands, the wind whistled outside the back room’s window. The storm was growing stronger.
“No, not quite the one,” Milo said as he put it back on the shelf.
He grabbed the second, a yellow one, off the shelf. Just as he did, a heaping pile of snow slumped off the outside windowsill. The snow came down even harder.
“Not perfect,” Milo muttered as he switched the yellow one with the next one on the shelf: a glittery purple one. This time, the wind howled outside and the sky grew darker. Milo suddenly felt very worried. It seemed that the conditions of the blizzard outside were growing worse with each ornament he grabbed off the shelf!
Testing his theory, Milo grabbed another. This time, a bolt of lightning flashed from the sky and struck the snow just outside the shop!
“Lightning in a snowstorm!?” Milo thought aloud to himself. “This is very bad indeed. I better choose one of these quickly.”
So, Milo furrowed his brow and examined each of the five ornaments one after the other, again and again. They were each beautiful in their own way, but Milo couldn’t help himself but to spot the tiniest imperfections. A chip here, a crack there. None of them were perfect and every time Milo grabbed one for the other, the storm outside grew worse!
Was this the power Nicholas had spoken of? Was this some type of test? Milo was scared, but he thought the only way forward was to pick an ornament. Oh, but he couldn’t choose!
The storm raged on as minutes turned to hours! Milo was so nervous he was sweating through his hat! Should he pick the blue one? The yellow one? The purple fancy one? The green with white stripes? The frosted pink one? He couldn’t decide! They weren’t perfect!
Eventually, Milo became so nervous his hands began to sweat. One by one, he dropped each of the ornaments! As they shattered into pieces on the store’s floor, Milo began to weep. He had broken every one, and lost his only chance at putting together the perfect Christmas tree.
As he slowly made his way back to the front of the shop, he ran into Nicholas.
“I’m so sorry,” Milo said through tears. “I broke all your ornaments. I didn’t mean to! I just couldn’t find the perfect one. Now this storm is going to last forever and it’s all my fault!”
“Oh Milo,” Nicholas offered as he flew down to a perch at Milo’s eye level. “There’s nothing to fear. Those ornaments were old. They were bound to break sooner or later.”
“But it was my fault! I couldn’t decide,” cried Milo.
“It’s alright. I was hoping those old ornaments could teach you a lesson, but the magic in this shop works in mysterious ways.”
“A lesson?” asked Milo.
“There’s no such thing as perfection, my young snail friend. And no storm can be made or broken by one single snail. Look outside.”
Milo looked out the front window of the shop. To his surprise, the storm seemed to have calmed down. Snow had stopped falling, and a single ray of sunshine bursted through the clouds above.
“The only thing that can weather a storm is time and patience,” continued Nicholas. “And as for your pursuit of perfection, the perfect ornament is the one you like. Simple as that. One that sparks joy, and provides a smile on your face. Isn’t that what Christmas is truly about? Spreading joy?”
Milo nodded, sniffling.
“Now, look around. Is there an ornament in this store that sparks joy?”
Milo looked at the shelves around him. His eyes fell on the green and red spiral ornament he had smiled at when he first entered the shop. He had dismissed it quickly when he first came in, thinking it was much too small to fill the gap in his Christmas tree. But then again, he thought about what Nicholas had just said. Did it make Milo smile?
“This one is nice,” Milo said, as he picked it up carefully with both hands. “It kind of reminds me of me… What do you think?”
Nicholas smiled. “I think it’s perfect, nearly.”
Milo chuckled as Nicholas took the ornament and wrapped it neatly in Christmas tissue paper. Milo tried to give Nicholas extra money for the ornaments he’d broken in the back, but the old owl would have none of it.
“They served their purpose,” he said. “I’m just glad this one here has found a home.”
Nicholas handed Milo his new wrapped ornament and sent the young snail on his way. Outside the shop, Milo made his way back through the village toward his home. As he traveled, Milo examined the details of everything on the way home. The snow on the ground was a bit too stiff, too cold. The sun overhead shined through the clouds a bit too brightly, and the air was, of course, just a bit too crisp. Still, Milo thought about all of this, all these little imperfections and smiled. The day wasn’t perfect, but if he had learned anything today, it was that he wasn’t either.
Milo went home and placed his new ornament within the gap on his Christmas tree. To his surprise, it sparkled a bit when the lights from the tree hit it at the right angle. The twinkle of it made Milo smile. At that, he thought, was all that mattered.