Due to the tragic accident that took away his family on Christmas Eve, Carlo Moncada, heir to a coffee empire, decided to erase those terrible dates from his life and started his own tradition "festivus ". He took great care to educate his children with these rituals.
The most hated month of the year arrives for Don Carlo who, in the midst of a whirlwind of emotions, receives his sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren and ex-wife for the customary festivus. This year he looks tired.
I have served in this mansion for the last 20 years and I have earned Don Carlo's trust, I am his right hand. I know perfectly well all the family and their ways so, this festivus for me and all of us who serve in the mansion. It is stressful as work multiplies and we must please them all.
From the window of the master's office, I saw the family members arrive one by one. I went downstairs to greet them and wait for Don Carlo's presence in the great hall to officially start this year's festivus.
I announced the entrance of the head of the house and his voice was overshadowed by the explosion against the marble floor of the expensive bottle of whiskey that slipped from the hands of the ex-wife of the old millionaire.
-Festivus Miracle!" shouted everyone present as they embraced each other. It was official, the family circus had begun.
Don Carlo's grandchildren brought down the festivus pole from the attic. They stood here aluminum pole on the table in the great hall so that they could sit at dinner time next to it.
Don Carlo's eldest granddaughter, a young woman who lives for her image, was taking pictures for her social networks. A deafening scream paralyzed everyone. The girl had blood on her hand and everyone gathered around to watch, her uncle, Don Carlo's youngest son, left a pin on the cushion and the girl pricked herself. Her irresponsible uncle hugged her while whispering in her ear "miracle of festivus ".
It seems that no one but me noticed Don Carlo's exhausted expression. The years were weighing on him, as was the strain of supporting the family.
It was time for dinner. I impeccably served each course as the family sat down to recap the year that was ending. In the corner of the long table of dishes I installed Don Carlo, who smiled when the waiter tripped over the youngest grandson's foot and ended up with his face stuck in the salad and splashed the new suit of the boss's firstborn who had not taken off his phones attending to the business of the family business.
The waiter peeled off his plate and stood up in pain as the children high-fived each other saying another miracle of festivus.
Don Carlo's oldest son pounded the table angrily, "You know what a miracle of festivus is? This suit that went bankrupt and I spent my 2 months salary to buy it when the damn family factory is in the red due to low sales," he said as the veins on his forehead popped out.
A sepulchral silence reigned at the table. -I got arrested 3 times this year for drunk driving, I didn't pay the mortgage on the apartment so now I live in my car. Festivus, you creep," said Don Carlo's ex-wife, barely holding her seat.
The man at the head of the table began to breathe heavily. It seemed that this year the Festivus was determined to hit him hard.
I served the espresso just the way the patron likes it. They must have been busy when no one noticed the delicious aroma wafting through the Festivus.
His mother-in-law had not finished speaking when the wife of the eldest son stood up and accused her husband of cheating with his brother's wife. The voices of all at once crossed each other and sounded like the murmurings of bees.
The insults were so great that they all ended up on the floor hitting each other and Don Carlo with the calm he always maintained in the face of trouble, I don't know if it was a gift or a curse but it made me sick to see the world fall to the ground and him sitting there with no expression on his face. He saw a small box under the festivus pole.
He opened it as the others hit the ground. The smell of fresh pine wafted to his nose. It was a small mistletoe, symbolic of the Christmas where bitterness took over his life. It reminded him that he failed in every aspect of life and not knowing who sent such an offense to his table he gave a cry.
Everyone was paralyzed. They saw Don Carlo wallowing in his chair until he fell lifeless to the floor.
I picked up the deceased's coffee cup, a gold-plated beauty inlaid with diamonds, another of the Don's eccentricities. I walked past the shocked descendants of the old man and into the kitchen. Todos los sirvientes en silencio con la cabeza abajo.
Whispering I looked at them all and said:
blessed miracle of festivus that we got rid of the old man
