“But I don't want to go to Bermuda!” Jackie yelled at her mum as she walked out of the room. “It is boring there. I want to go to Egypt for Christmas so we can see the pyramids!”“I know, darling we all do, but we just can't this year. We do not have the money for it and we also have family in Bermuda,” Jackie's Mum replied, with her head in her hands. “Now stop being hysterical!”Jacqueline Rooks sat on the couch in her London home staring at her Mum waiting for some sort of answer from her. She had never been to Bermuda, only heard about it in school and thought it was the most boring place in the world. Twenty one square miles of hills and it is always filled with tourists. What fun is that?! Jackie also hated Christmas; there were too many family members to hug, too many presents to wrap and buy and too much food and fuss to make over one day. That is why she wanted to go to Egypt, no family to hug, no presents to wrap, no food to make!“Your father and I have established a deal. It is either here or Bermuda. You and your brother's choice,” her mum said as she walked up the old wooden stairs of their house.Jackie had two brothers, one of whom was away at college and she missed him dearly, the other was seven and, to her, was a spoiled little brat who got everything he wants.So Jackie walked out of the room and up the stairs so loud the house shook. She kicked the door to her room open and flopped down on her big, queen sized purple bed.“Jason!” she called to her brother “Come here now!”“What do you want?” he shouted back.“To discuss our trip. Just come!”He walked in lazily and sat on her bed, and she kicked him off. So he got up and folded his arms.“Well, what do you want?!” he shouted.“We are either going to Bermuda or staying here. What would you rather do?” she said calmly.“Bermuda.” And he left.Geez. Weirdo. Jackie thought to herself and got up and walked down the stairs to her mom cooking in the kitchen.“Mom, Jason wants to go to Bermuda.”“Well, it's settled then we're going!” she said excitedly. “Get packing!”Jackie folded her arms and walked up to her room and got a suitcase. She stuffed a bunch of clothes in there and got her traveling things.Before she knew it she was on the airplane three-quarters of the way to Bermuda.“Flight-attendants please prepare for landing.” The pilot said though the PA.Then she heard a grinding sound of the wheels coming down and the sight of Bermuda peeked though the window.Jackie leaned over to her mom and said, “You know, I still don't want to be here.”Her mum just sighed and folded her arms.The plane hit ground, made a terrible racket and started speeding down the runway.“This place is so weird,” Jackie muttered to herself.They pulled up to the airport and a stairway pulled up to the airplane. She glanced out the window to see the ocean gleaming in the moonlight. Just for a moment she was mesmerized by the aura and found it almost beautiful, but then realised almost everyone had already shuffled off the plane. Jackie jumped up knocking her tray-table and bumping her head on the light above.“Ow,” Jackie groaned. “Only 10 minutes here and it is already gone bad.”Before she realised it she was at the bottom, and she realised that the stairs were attached to a truck, Cool, Jackie thought, and then she ran into a little hallway that ran into a large carpeted room full of murmuring people. Jackie spotted her family mid-way through the line and walked toward them.Jackie didn't pay much attention to what happened afterwards until she gingerly stepped out of the taxi and into a large lobby of a hotel called Grotto Bay. Her father gave her a hotel key card and a map of the property. She figured this place wasn't too bad. It had a pool with a snack bar, Jacuzzi and many other fun things to do.As they unlocked the door to their room Jackie noted the wired roof, all white and jagged. She'd heard once that it was used for collecting rainwater for houses. Smart, she thought, but what about bird poop?She entered the room and flopped on the bed. Her father began to read a colourful newspaper called The Royal Gazette. Humph, Jackie thought, and I thought this place was too small even to have news. We learn something everyday, I suppose. She saw her father's face light up as he turned the pages.“Honey,” he called to Jackie's mother. “There's a Christmas parade tonight in the city. I'm sure it'll be great.”“But I hate Christmas, Dad,” Jackie whined. “Let alone Christmas parades!”But before she knew it she was staring out of a taxi window, heading to the city. The winding roads and constant up and downs made her feel sick and her brother wasn't helping.The taxi pulled up to the sidewalk and the family tumbled out to the street. The driver wished them Merry Christmas before zooming off. They walked around the block and found that the sidewalks were crowded. Jackie gazed into a shop while absent-mindedly nodding to father as she made a speech about staying together and where to meet up if lost. She'd glanced into the store for what felt like three seconds but had turned out to be three minutes. When she turned around, her family was gone. Jackie, determined to stay calm, glanced both ways before sitting down and thinking her parents would look in the place they last saw her. After 15 minutes Jackie began to softly weep.“You alright?” Jackie heard a girl say.Jackie glanced up with puffy eyes to see a girl about her age in a purple and white mini dress, white boots, dark skin, and hair tied into hundreds of long, brown, tight braids, crouched down next to her. Jackie wiped her eyes and said, “Yes, it's just I've lost my family and …”“Well, I can help with that!” the girl said, helping Jackie up. “I just finished my piece and I'm not getting picked up until nine thirty.”“Oh, well, um, thanks.” Jackie smiled.As the two weaved through the sidewalk she explained that her name was Kiara and she was a majorette, which was a type of street dancer.“So where is your family?” Jackie asked.Kiara sighed. “Well, my mom is at work and my brother is away in school and my dad,” she nervously shifted her feet, “I I don't know.”“Oh,” Jackie said. She truly felt sorry for this girl, which was unusual for her. The two kept walking in silence looking everywhere for Jackie's family. Just then an up-beat hip-hop version of Jingle Bells began playing.“Oh, this is my song!” Kiara squealed and ran onto Front Street, pulling Jackie with her. Kiara began to dance with a bunch of other girls.“Who is this?” one girl asked, smiling and playing with Jackie's hair.“Jackie,” Kiara shouted over the music.The group began to dance and Jackie was urged to join in, so she did. She had to admit, she was having fun. These girls had style, they were fun, they brought Jackie glass candy (which she thought was the best thing ever made), and made her feel at home.After running around and dancing, Jackie was worn out, but was reluctant to leave once her parents had found her. Most of these girls had no parents, their family was their friends and a few couldn't afford Christmas presents. But they taught Jackie that Christmas and life wasn't about material things and money but about joy and happiness.