I knew I was not supposed to be quite so excited. I was too old for that. At age eleven, the oldest and my mom's "grown up" girl, I had to keep calm. I was in middle school after all. But every chance I got, when I was alone, I 1 each present under the tree. I read every tag (标签) and felt every bag, guessing at the things within. I had examined each gift so often that I could tell which2went to which person without looking at the tags.
It had been a hard year for my family. Whenever my mom looked over at the tree and presents, she would sigh (叹气) and warn us, "There won't be as much for Christmas this year. Try not to be 3." Christmas had been a time for my parents to spoil (宠爱) us. I had heard the phrase "giving is better than receiving", but getting presents was the whole point!
On Christmas morning, we 4 waited in the hallway until Dad told us everything was ready. We rushed into the living room and had to wait and 5 while other family members opened their presents, but as the time passed we lost our self-control.
"Here's another one for you," said Mom as she handed me a bag. I looked at it, confused. Having spent so much time examining the presents before Christmas, I 6 this one. It was for my mom!
It was a blow dryer. While this may seem only a simple gift, to me it was so much more. But, in my world, where receiving was more important than giving, my mom's act of selflessness was difficult to 7. I thought in disbelief about how much my mom must love me to do that.
I have always remembered that Christmas with love. As an adult with children, I can now see my mom was finding an even greater 8 in her Christmas because giving truly is better than receiving. To me, my mom's simple act meant the world.
