Because we did not have a car, we frequently took the streetcar and go downtown San Francisco. Downtown San Francisco was quite different. everyone wore their best as they went window shopping. Women wore their white gloves and hats. It was rather formal.
Downtown stores were decorated with animated animals and people. It was like a field trip for me. It seemed that one store would try to outdo the next. It was quite a show and it was not missed by me. I stared and ogled, but not once really made demands that my parents could not afford.
My parents entered a huge Woolworth and I got to pick one gift. Although I had a toy piano in Amsterdam, everything seemed to be bigger and better in the US.
There it was. What appeared to me a huge toy piano, and....it had a little bench I could sit on so I could pay it. My parents easily recognizing my excitement, purchased it, hence, my first Xmas gift. It wasn't wrapped and didn't have to wait to be used. It was all mine. I loved making music. Our family loved music. The house was full of it, which always seem to minimalize what we did not have. We could not afford a Christmas tree, but that thought never occurred to me.
I remembered the songs I had learned in class in Holland and played them with great enthusiasm. I also tried to reproduce the songs I had heard on the radio in the States. Johnny Horton's song. The Battle of New Orleans", was the first song that I will always remember. I liked the beat. I tried to imitate the words, although I had no clue what I was saying.
I played endlessly. My mom was totally delighted. It was the best Christmas gift ever.
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