The right left Christmas game, with three stories to read

It was Christmas Eve, and the whole family squeezed into Grandma June’s little blue house at the end of Holly Lane. Dad came in last, because he had LEFT the pumpkin pie on the roof of the car. “Is the pie all RIGHT?” asked Grandma June. Dad lifted the lid. One corner had a dent the size of a mitten. “It’s mostly RIGHT,” he said.

Uncle Ray turned LEFT into the kitchen and walked RIGHT into the cookie table. A tower of gingerbread men began to wobble. Milo, who was seven, caught two with his RIGHT hand and one with his LEFT, and he ate the one with the broken leg so nobody would feel bad for it.

Then it was time to put the star on the tree, but the star was missing. “Is it on the LEFT shelf?” asked Hattie. “Not quite RIGHT,” said Grandma June. “Is it in the box of lights LEFT over from last year?” asked Uncle Ray. “Getting warmer,” she said. In the end, they found it under the couch, RIGHT next to Biscuit the dog, a lost sock and three crayons.

Aunt Rosa climbed the step stool and leaned a little to the LEFT, then a little to the RIGHT, until the star sat RIGHT on top. Everyone cheered. Biscuit barked twice, which in dog means “You’re welcome.”

After dinner, the family sang carols. Uncle Ray knew every word, just not in the RIGHT order. Hattie sang from the LEFT side of the song sheet, Milo sang from the RIGHT side, and somehow it all came out as one very jolly song.

When the dishes were done, there was only one slice of pie LEFT. Dad looked at Uncle Ray. Uncle Ray looked at Aunt Rosa. Grandma June picked up a knife and cut the slice RIGHT down the middle, then again, and again, until there were eight tiny pieces. That was exactly RIGHT for everyone in the room, except Biscuit, who got a dog biscuit instead.

At bedtime, Grandma June peeked out the window on the LEFT. Snow was falling. She peeked out the window on the RIGHT. Still snowing. “I think,” she said, “we’re going to have a white Christmas.” And she was RIGHT.

Milo LEFT a cookie on the windowsill for Santa. Hattie LEFT a carrot for the reindeer. Then the cousins climbed the stairs, turned LEFT at the photo of Great-Grandpa Lou, and tumbled into bed, RIGHT as the clock struck nine.

And the gift in your hands RIGHT now? It’s yours to keep. Merry Christmas!

It was the day of the holiday party at Snowcap Supply Co., and Dana from accounting was in charge. She had a clipboard in her LEFT hand and a coffee in her RIGHT. “Decorations, RIGHT here. Snacks, RIGHT there. Music...” She looked around. The speaker was missing.

“I LEFT it in the break room,” said Marcus from sales. “I think.” He jogged down the hall, turned LEFT at the copier, then RIGHT at the plant nobody remembers to water, and came back with the speaker and a box of candy canes LEFT over from last year.

At noon, the printer jammed RIGHT in the middle of the party menu. Priya from IT opened the LEFT door, then the RIGHT door, then a third door nobody knew it had. Out came the menu, a paper snowflake and a coupon from 2019. “All RIGHT,” said Priya. “We’re back in business.”

The potluck table filled up fast. Dana put the chili on the LEFT, the cookies on the RIGHT, and a sign in the middle that said “Save some for the night shift.” Marcus took one cookie with his RIGHT hand and two with his LEFT, and said nobody had told him which hand counted.

Then came the ugly sweater contest. Gary from shipping wore a sweater with real jingle bells, so every time he turned LEFT or RIGHT, the whole floor heard him coming. Dana’s reindeer sweater had light-up eyes, but only the LEFT one worked, so the reindeer winked at everyone all afternoon.

The boss stood up to give a speech. “I’ll keep this short,” she said, which everyone knew was not quite RIGHT. She thanked the team for a great year, thanked Gary for the bells, and thanked Priya for saving the printer, RIGHT before it jammed again.

By four o’clock there was one slice of cake LEFT, two people reaching for it, and a long, polite silence. Dana settled it RIGHT away. She cut the slice in half, gave the LEFT half to Marcus and the RIGHT half to Gary, and kept the frosting snowflake for herself.

As people pulled on their coats, Dana checked her clipboard one last time. Decorations, done. Snacks, gone. Speaker, back in the break room, on the shelf to the LEFT of the microwave. “That party went RIGHT,” she said, and turned off the lights.

And the gift in your hands RIGHT now? It’s yours to keep. Happy holidays, everyone!

Pip was the smallest elf at the North Pole, and tonight was Christmas Eve. Santa’s sleigh was packed and waiting RIGHT outside the workshop door.

“Pip!” called Mrs. Claus. “Santa needs his red mittens RIGHT away!”

Pip found the RIGHT mitten on the hook by the door. But where was the LEFT mitten? Pip looked to the LEFT. Toys. Pip looked to the RIGHT. More toys!

Pip asked Dasher. Dasher shook his antlers LEFT and RIGHT. No mitten.

Pip asked the snowman by the stable. The snowman pointed his stick arm to the LEFT, so Pip ran LEFT, past the candy cane fence, all the way to the pond. There sat a snowy owl. “Hoo,” said the owl. “Not this way. Try RIGHT.”

So Pip ran RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT, all the way to Mrs. Claus’s kitchen. There, on the cookie tray, was the LEFT mitten, stuffed with warm gingerbread.

“Oh, my!” laughed Mrs. Claus. “I used it to carry the cookies, and I LEFT it RIGHT there.”

Pip shook out the crumbs and raced back to the sleigh. Santa pulled on the LEFT mitten and the RIGHT mitten and wiggled his fingers. “Just RIGHT,” he said. “Thank you, Pip!”

The bells jingled. The sleigh rose up, swooped LEFT over the stable, swooped RIGHT over the workshop and flew off into the starry sky.

Pip waved until the sleigh was gone, then went back to the kitchen, because there was one warm cookie LEFT.

And the present in your hands RIGHT now? It’s yours to keep. Merry Christmas!