Adorable Woman

Sue was an adorable woman with a very kind heart. She had many friends but none of them had any inkling as to why she used to disappear every Christmas Eve. Even John’s father was kept out of the secret, let alone other people. Even he remained unknown to this secret of hers. 

Probably Shopping

Though nobody had any idea about where she used to go, they all had made their own speculations. When John would ask his father “Dad, where’s mom?” He would answer, “I dunno, probably shopping.” But somewhere deep down his father and John knew that was not true. 

Not True?

In the absence of any solid reason, John’s father assumed that she used to go shopping to buy gifts. But each time the woman would come empty-handed complaining that there was no good stuff in the market. It was strange. John knew that she used to get done with the shopping days before Christmas. He said, “She gets her gifts done before Thanksgiving. She’s finished!”            

Shopping Just An Excuse

Notably, Sue would get out of the house in noon and would not come back until the evening. John said that his mother would disappear at least for three years. However, no one in the house was as concerned as John was. His father and other family member considered this unannounced disappearance of hers as some last moment shopping panic. 

There Was Something Else

So the family was under this false impression that she used to go shopping on Christmas eve. But John knew that this was not the case. Sue too knew that the doubts of her family were growing every year but still, she could not leave this weird habit of hers.       

His Inspiration

Now, John had grown old and so did his mother. The woman said goodbye to the world in her early 70s. However, the mystery behind her weird disappearance in Christmas Eve still remained unsolved. John assumed that the secret would remain a secret until a letter made its way to him.