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“Merry Christmas,” Siri whispered, and pulled the bright red Santa hat onto her head. She swatted at the little white puffball at the tip of it and knocked on the door to Hallie’s apartment. She could hear music and laughter on the other side of the door.

The door opened, and Hallie was standing there, laughing. “Merry Christmas!” four different voices behind her shouted in unison. Siri held up a large shopping bag that contained a present for everyone and a chocolate cake. “Merry Christmas!” she said.
“Nice hat!” Hallie said, grinning. Siri laughed and entered the apartment.

The apartment had been decorated so lavishly that it looked as if she’d just walked into the North Pole. Red and green tinsel was hung on the walls. Paper chains and snowflakes plastered everywhere the tinsel hadn’t covered, and wreaths were hung at every window. The counter was covered with food, and Siri put the cake on the side where all the desserts were resting. She placed the presents under the tree, which looked like it belonged in Times Square. There were strands of white tinsel and popcorn strings and candy canes draped over the branches. Red and white glass balls hung from almost every other branch, and mini stockings were hung along the bottom, each one holding a candy bar. There were santas and crosses and mangers hung at random places on the tree, along with a few ornaments that had special meaning to Hallie or her friends. Siri touched a plastic baseball cap and smiled. She’d bought that ornament for Hallie when they were seven years old.

Aly turned up the stereo and started singing along to “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” while everyone else joined in. When the song ended,Kelly jumped up and said,”Everyone’s here now, Hallie! Let’s eat!” Hallie laughed and nodded. Without saying another word, Kelly rushed to the counter and grabbed a cocktail weiner. Vicky and Ellie followed, grabbing apples. Siri must have given them a look, because Vicky said, “We’re being healthy!”
“Yeah!” Ellie agreed. “We’re going to beat everyone in the fitness test this year!”
“And the mile run, and the sit ups, and the–”
“Okay, okay!” Siri yelled. “We get it!”
“And you’re gonna fail!” Vicky teased.
Siri glared at them, and everyone started laughing.

She threw away all opportunities of future at an early age, disappearing into the crowds. Slowly, everyone forgot she even existed. While everyone around her was swinging from the monkey bars, she sat in the sandbox, alone, with her bucket and shovel. Scooping sand in, dumping it back out. When they slept, she lay awake, staring at the ceiling and waiting patiently for the time to tick by.

When someone talked to her, she mumbled an answer and turned away. They left her alone after she had made it clear she didn’t want them around. She skipped the bonus questions on tests, never tried to read or write any more than she had to, and always sat out of games during recess. She liked watching everyone else, but it never occured to her to try herself.

As she got older, she remained the same. Always watching everyone else have fun, never trying to herself. She shunned anyone who tried to reach out to her, and
ignored any attempts to make something out of her life.

When her parents wanted to know if she wanted to go to a summer camp, she said no without a second thought. They asked what she wanted for Christmas. She didn’t want anything, she said.

When her classmates were signing up for driving lessons, she bought a bus pass. She watched in silence as they all went, laughing, out to the parking lot. She got on the bus and rode home, without looking back.

One day she received a large envelope in the mail. Junk, she thought. She tossed it into the trash can and forgot about it, not realizing she’d just thrown out a scholarship to Harvard University. Instead she went to a local college
She was so cold and silent no one even noticed her. Most people forgot she was there minutes after seeing her. She went through life, alone, overlooking any opportunities and living only in her dreams. She even died quietly.

Will you just watch your life go by? Or will you take hold of every opportunity that comes your way?