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Funny Christmas story: the elf who wrapped himself up
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In Santa's workshop, every elf has a special job. Some elves paint. Some elves sew. Some elves hammer and saw.
And Tam wraps.
Tam is the fastest wrapper at the North Pole. Fold, tape, ribbon, bow. Fold, tape, ribbon, bow. His hands move so fast they are almost a blur.
"Done!" Tam would shout. "Next!"
And the elves would clap, because nobody could wrap like Tam.
Faster and faster
One busy morning, there was a huge pile of things to wrap. Tam rolled up his sleeves.
"I'm going to be faster than ever today," he said.
Fold, tape, ribbon, bow. Fold, tape, ribbon, bow.
Faster and faster went Tam. The paper rustled. The tape squeaked. Ribbons flew through the air like streamers.
Fold, tape, ribbon, bow. Fold, tape, ribbon...
Wait. Where was the next thing to wrap?
Tam did not look. He just grabbed the nearest thing. Fold, tape, ribbon, BOW.
"Done!" he shouted. Only it came out as "Mmmf!"
Where is Tam?
A little while later, Pip the elf came by.
"Tam?" called Pip. "Santa wants to know how many are done."
No answer.
Pip looked around. There was the table. There were the scissors. There was a long row of beautifully wrapped presents.
And at the end of the row was one very strange parcel. It was tall and thin. It had a big red bow on top. And it was... wobbling.
"Mmmf," said the parcel.
Pip stared.
"Mmmf, mmmf!" said the parcel. And a pointy green shoe poked out of the bottom.
Unwrapping
"Help!" shouted Pip. "Tam has wrapped himself up!"
All the elves came running. Santa came too, with his glasses on his nose.
Very carefully, Pip untied the bow. He peeled off the tape. He unfolded the paper.
And out popped Tam. His hat was squashed. His hair was full of clear tape. And he had a ribbon tied around one ear.
"Ta-daaa," said Tam weakly.
For one second, everyone was quiet.
Then the whole workshop burst out laughing. The elves laughed so hard that they had to hold on to each other. Santa laughed so hard that his glasses slid off his nose.
And Tam? Tam laughed loudest of all.
Slow and steady
When everyone had stopped laughing, Santa helped Tam pull the tape out of his hair.
"Being fast is a wonderful thing, Tam," he said. "But sometimes it helps to slow down and look at what you are doing."
"And maybe," said Pip, "check that it's not yourself."
From then on, Tam still wrapped beautifully. But now, before each present, he took one deep breath and had a little look.
Fold, tape, ribbon, bow. Look. Fold, tape, ribbon, bow. Look.
And he never wrapped himself up again. Well, almost never.
Things to talk about
- What was Tam's special job?
- How did Tam end up wrapped up?
- What can you do when you are rushing too much?
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