The mysterious small package

Dear reader,

the other day I watched an episode of "Sherlock" again in which Sherlock Holmes gets a small envelope. "We've X-rayed it. It's not booby-trapped", explains Inspector Lestrade. "How reassuring", comments Sherlock Holmes dry and takes the envelope.

That reminded me again of an experience shortly before Christmas. I was at my dad's and had just brought him the post from the mail box up to the kitchen. Among them he had received a small package. I was curious and asked, if I should open it. "No, better let me do it", he said and suddenly seemed very insecure. He didn't have a clue who had sent him the package. He didn't know the sender at all and even more important than the sender: what was in the small package?

My dad went to the knifes and took one. That way I was standing across from him at the other end of the table and I gave the package to him. Carefully he opened it with the knife, took out mostly newspaper and finally then... a couple of small sort of sticks out of dark wood.

Now I was the one looking insecure and stupid. I had to ask him what those sticks were. Small spoons for jam for example, he explained to me. I asked him, what he had expected to find in that package really, because he had been so insecure. "A bomb?", I asked him. But apparently at that moment then, that had actually been on his mind. Whatever the reason for sending him a bomb might have been. I remember thinking: even if it had been a bomb, whether I had opened it or not, most likely I would have been hurt either way, since we had been standing together quite close, even with the table between us.

That was the mysterious small package before Christmas. Suffice to say that my dad is still not quite used to getting small or larger packages from strangers. Until recently my mom had done stuff like that and my dad usually only buys from amazon mainly, which is known to everyone.

Until next blog,
sarah