Once in a Lifetime Christmas

  There is a special feeling of excitement that comes with Christmas. Anticipation of fun in freshly fallen snow, those delicious cookies that mom bakes every Christmas, and the warmth of family and friends. For me, that’s Christmas tradition. Usually, my family travels a short distance to get together, but last year the circumstances were just a little different.

   My sister, Anna, was on tour with an organization called “Up with People.” She had been on tour for five months, singing, dancing, and doing community service. She loved being on tour, and worked very hard in raising money to get there, but was beginning to miss home and family. She had one more show left, which was in Uppsala, Sweden. My mother and I, after several chats, decided that we would make a “once in a lifetime trip” and fly to Sweden to surprise her. It was exceedingly difficult to keep quiet about our secret trip when speaking to my sister on the phone.

  My father planned out our trip for us and booked our hotel in Uppsala, Sweden. We could not believe what we were about to do. The day finally came, and we packed up our belongings and hopped on the plane. The plane ride was 16 hours and then came the 2 hour train ride which transferred to a 5 hour bus ride. Reading maps and signs in Swedish was difficult, but luckily, Swedish people are also fluent in English.

  My heart leapt with excitement when I realized we had finally reached our destination. We were now only blocks away from my sister, and she had no idea. Heels and roller suitcases, my mother and I somehow made our way to the Uppsala Hotel. Due to the six hour time zone difference, my mind was a little puzzled and would not let me fall asleep. With minimal amounts of sleep, my mother and I got ready that next morning and began another journey. We studied acquired maps and eventually found the astonishing performance center, which was called ‘Fyrishov’. We could not contain ourselves as we walked through the rotating doors. Immediately, we began asking everyone in sight if they knew where the UWP cast was. One man, wearing a suit and headset, knew exactly who Anna Struss was and said, “Follow me!”

  As we got closer, the echoing voices became clearer. He took us through a back door that weaved through backstage. We snuck around the stage curtain and were now standing kitty corner to the cast. My sister took a double take and then let reality set in. She burst into tears and hopped off stage to hold us both. By the time she let go of us, half the cast was also in tears from watching the saccharine reunion. That Christmas was defiantly a “once in a lifetime opportunity”, and I would do it all over again, any day!