May your tapcard survive the upcoming festive season

People are exhausted this time of year and the lovely Snapdragon is no exception.

On Saturday afternoon, I put my foot down: “Take a sleeping tablet, go to bed and I don’t want to see you again until
tomorrow morning.”

For once she didn’t argue. She gave the five-year-old Egg a sermon before retiring: “I need the sleep. Tonight it is just you and your father – I’m dead for all intents and purposes.”

Egg was happy with the idea.

“We can go to the mall on a date night. We must just take Daddy’s tapcard. If you have a tapcard, you don’t have to pay for anything. You just tap it in the shops and they give you stuff for free.”

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“You’re due for a huge disappointment,” I told her, well aware of my debit card’s fragile tapping potential.

At the mall, we browsed through the toy shop before we had a waffle. Then we went to a games arcade. At the counter, I landed up next to the mother of a six-year-old boy.

“Aren’t they just a blessing?” she said, pointing to Egg and her son, who were staring at each other. He was clinging to her leg and I couldn’t help noticing that she was dressed in skin-tight jeans.

We ended up chatting for a few minutes, before she asked a serious question: “Her mom…?”

I stopped staring at her jeans and looked at her left hand. She wasn’t wearing any rings. Egg took it upon herself to answer the question.

“My mom is dead,” she said.

“Oh?!” the woman exclaimed.

“Yes,” Egg said. “It’s only daddy and me.”

“That’s terrible,” the woman said, but I noticed a hint of a smile.

“Not really,” Egg said. “At least we still have his bottomless tapcard.”

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“We’re going to the movies just now. Do you two want to join us?” the mom asked.

I had to decline. A widower has to bath his little girl and put her to bed after all.

The next six weeks, dear reader, is going to be difficult. Black Friday, year-end parties, short tempers…

May you be able to rest at every possible opportunity, like Snapdragon did. And may you still look good in tight-fitting jeans after the festivities.

And most important of all, may your tap card survive the upcoming festive season.