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Ug was a very special elf.  He did not look like all the other elves.  Where they were fair skinned, he was dark.  Their ears were pointy and his were blunt.  He did not wear the green and red of Christmas, he preferred yellow.  His eyes were not the usual color of blue and green, he had been blessed with brown, the color of mud.  His eyes were deep and dark with years of wisdom.  When it came time for the Christmas rush Ug knew where he was expected to be.  He would go into a small room and wait to wrap.  While all the other elves would be wrapping the most fabulous toys in the most brightly colored papers, Ug would be waiting for all the toys that no one wanted to wrap in the paper nobody wanted to use.  Ug didn’t mind.  He liked the quiet.  He loved all they toys he wrapped, they weren’t as grand as some of those the other elves were wrapping, but he knew they would make a child happy, and that was all he needed to know.  Santa would come into the room sometimes and just sit.  He enjoyed watching Ug wrap.  He put so much love into each package.  Santa would watch Ug and chuckle to himself.  He would puff on his pipe and relax.  All the other elves were always so busy and in a hurry, but not Ug.  He was sure and steady.  He just loved his work.

One day, close to Christmas, Santa was feeling particularly busy.  Elves were being needy, the reindeer were getting restless and Mrs. Clause was nagging him about his suit needing let out…again.  He headed to his sanctuary, the one place he could get away, Ugs’ room.  When Santa arrived at the door he knocked gently, but got no response.  He peeked in the room, “Ug?” but he saw no one and heard nothing.  No rustling or paper, no soft hiss of tape.  Ug was not in his wrapping room.  Santa wondered what could have happened to Ug.  He left and headed to the main wrapping room.  He wanted to ask the other elves if they  had seen Ug.  When he walked into the room the noise assaulted his ears, he tried to get their attention, but elves tend to have one track minds when it comes to gift wrapping.  Santa grabbed the first elf he could get a hold of.  “Do you know where Ug is?”  Santa asked the elf loudly.  The elf looked up at Santa with his big blue eyes.  “Who?”  Santa looked at the elf with disbelief.  “Ug, the elf.”  How could the elf not know his fellow elf?  How strange.  The elf, whose name was Psycho, looked around the room, “I’ve no time to look for silly elves, it’s wrapping time.”  With that he scurried away to fetch more ribbon.  Santa decided not to bother with asking the elves, they were far too busy.  He quickly exited the chaotic room to gather his thoughts and find Mrs. Clause, surely she would know where Ug was. Santa quickly followed a long hallway to the sewing room.  This room was always bustling with activity.  Elves were always getting snags and popping buttons off.  There were always tears to men and of course Santa’s suits to let out, they never seemed to fit exactly right.  Santa stopped at the door and watched in wonder.  There, in the center of the room, was Mrs. Clause.  Even after all these years, too many to count, she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.  She looked up and smiled, “Why Papa, what are you doing here, your suit is no where near done yet?”  Santa laughed, “No, I was just wondering if you had seen my friend Ug?”  Mrs. Clause looked up from the small pair of socks she was darning.  “Why no, not since yesterday.  He wasn’t feeling well so I sent him to the kitchen for some soup and then straight to bed.”  With that Santa was off, he was now very worried.

The elves quarters were lavish as quarters go.  Red and green were everywhere.  At the end of the hall, up a few rickety steps there was a shiny yellow door.  This was Ugs room.  He had picked it long ago and had lavished long hours polishing the paint so it shined brightly.  Santa knocked gently on the door.  “Ug?  Are you in there?”  The hinges made no sound as Santa slowly swung the door to have a peek at the other side.  Inside the room was a small bed with a yellow blanket on it.  A small table beside the bed held one lonely candle.  Santa could barely make out the small figure of Ug, he seemed to be shivering.  Santa slowly walked in, he gently shut the door behind him.  The fire was burning brightly and it was very warm.  Santa looked around for a chair to sit on, but the only chair looked far too small for him and he did not want to break it. “Ug, are you feeling ok?”  The old elf looked up at Santa, his soulful eyes filled with tears.  “I don’t think I will see this Christmas old friend.”  Santa just looked at Ug, shaking his head, “No, you’re just under the weather, you’ll be fine.  Who will wrap all the gifts in your room?”  Ug reached out and took Santa’s hand.  “There are other elves, you will have to pick one.”  Santa spoke with disbelief.  “No one will love them like you do!”  The tears he was trying to hold back started to fall.  Ug squeezed his hand.  Santa could tell he was very weak.  “Well then I guess those gifts will not get wrapped.”  Santa could not believe his ears.  “How can you say that.  Those are very important gifts, you have to know that.  That is why you and only you get to wrap them.”  Ug looked up at Santa,  “Why are they so important?  You never have told me.  The other elves tell me they are too ugly for them to wrap.  So please, will you explain to me what they are for?”  Santa let out  a chuckle, “I will show you, I will go and finish the room full of presents myself and then I will take you with me to deliver them.  Then you will see for yourself.” Ug just smiled.  “Imagine that, Santa wrapping gifts, what will the other elves say?”  With a squeeze and a chuckle Santa left Ug to rest.  He went straight to Ugs wrapping room and began the job that would take him deep into the night.  No one bothered him, they had never seen him so determined.  Finally, in the wee hours of the morning, he was finally finished.  He looked at all the presents, all the drab paper without all the fancy ribbons and he felt love and pride fill his heart.  He knew this Christmas would be the most magical of them all.

The whole workshop was in an uproar.  Santa had never taken anyone out with him to deliver presents, let alone an elf.  Everyone had questions, not only why, but how?  How would he fit him in the sleigh?  How would he get him into the houses?  Santa just smiled and chuckled to himself and shook his head.  He did not think that he needed to explain himself to anyone.  Mrs. Clause was very busy letting out his suit even though Santa knew he had not eaten that many cookies.  The North Pole kitchen made the most wonderful food, especially their cookies.  Mrs. Clause swore his suit had to be let out a little bit every year.  The elves were all very curious, they made every excuse to be the sleigh and try to watch everything Santa was up too.  Ug came out of his room to watch the hustle and bustle.  He was very pale and walked with a cane, but enjoyed the festivities.  All of the elves were very nice to him now, they had never been mean, but now they genuinely cared what he needed or wanted.  They brought him a pillow to sit on, blankets to cover him and treats when he looked hungry.  Ug would accept everything graciously, he wasn’t sure he liked all the extra attention.  He was so used to being in his little room, quietly wrapping, that the noise and fuss was a drastic change.  He found himself wondering how all of those elves kept going at this pace.  It seemed to Ug they never stopped, never even slowed down much.  He respected their dedication and remembered  the long hours in his special little room, but he was never this manic.  He appreciated his room, his paper and his presents all the more.  He would miss everything so much and he wondered if he would be missed.  How would anyone even know he was gone in all of this?  He smiled to himself, he knew he would be missed, he knew that because Santa had told him and Santa would never lie about something that important, or for anything for that matter.

December 24th came faster than anyone could have imagined.  Excitement filled the air.  Some of the elves were getting the packages ready to go into the magic sack Santa carried with him.  Some were getting all of the reindeer ready for the long trek around the world.  Mrs. Clause and a band of strong elves were getting Santa into his suit.  Everything was going like clockwork.  The only difference was the small, comfy cushion that had been added to the sleigh.  Ug was the envy of all the elves at the North Pole,  an honor like this had never been bestowed on anyone before.  Joy was everywhere, it was in the clothes, the food and especially in the air.  Music floated and covered the whole workshop with a feeling of merriment.  This year Ug appreciated the music all the more.  He closed his eyes and let the wonderful melodies roll over him and wash away all the pain and heartache of the past few weeks.  He was very happy.  Finally it was time.  Ug was sure that Santa’s suit had never looked so red.  Actually, all of the colors seemed brighter, the songs merrier and the smells even more delicious than ever before.  Mrs. Clause came forward, her eyes looked red, but still she smiled bravely for Ug.  She presented Ug with his very own jacket and cap.  They were the most beautiful shade of yellow Ug had ever seen.  “To keep you warm”, she whispered.  Ug took them with pride.  He hugged Mrs. Clause tightly.  “These are the most fabulous duds I have ever owned, thank you so much ma’am.”  With that Santa helped Ug onto his comfy cushion.  Everyone was silent as Ug looked around for the last time.  He let out a sigh and waved.  He didn’t trust himself to speak, there were no words to express what he was feeling.  Santa watched as everyone waved silently to Ug and then he started calling out the reindeers names.  With a whoosh they were off.  All of the elves began to yell and cheer.  It was a send off like none other.  Ug loved it, he couldn’t believe how fast they were going.  His new clothes kept him toasty warm and all the colors in the sky seemed to blur together.  Santa steered them over mountain, over water and over miles of beautiful, undisturbed white snow.  Ug had never felt so alive as he did watching all the wonders of the world unfold beneath them.

After what seemed only a few minutes, Santa came to the first home on his delivery list.  Ug looked at the house.  He couldn’t believe the size, it was huge.  It seemed to go on forever.  There were lights everywhere.  Santa looked down at Ug, “This is not what I wanted to show you.  This is a house where they need no special wrapping, but expect it.”  With that he grabbed 4 very special presents.  They were wrapped with the fanciest paper and biggest ribbons Ug had ever seen.  Santa delivered the gifts and then they were off to the next house.  They went for quite awhile from house to house.  Some were big, some were small but all were nice and lit up for the Christmas season.  Finally Santa leaned towards Ug, “This next house I want you to come with me to deliver the gift.”  Ug just nodded.  Santa landed the sleigh in a field in front of a run down shack.  Ug was confused.  “Where are we going Santa?  Where is the house?  I don’t see any lights or fancy decorations.”  Santa smiled at Ug.  “This is the house, not all houses are big or fancy, some are just filled with love.”  Ug watched as Santa pulled a small plain present out of his pack.  It was one that Ug had wrapped.  Santa took Ug by the hand and in a flash they were magically inside the small house.  Ug couldn’t believe the difference.  Where the outside was ugly and plain the inside was beautiful and warm.  A small tree stood in the corner, adorned with homemade decorations.  It stood proudly against the sparse interior of the house.  Ug watched as Santa walked over to the tree and placed the present under the branches.  “It looks beautiful.”  whispered Ug.  Looking at the present he had wrapped he could not believe how fancy and wonderful it looked.  Santa gently put his hand on Ug frail shoulder.  “When you expect nothing, even the simplest thing is a treasure.”  With those words Santa made sure to eat a few cookies off the plate, he drank the milk and left a small note of thanks.

All through the night Santa showed Ug all the places where his presents would bring joy.  He was shown orphanages, hospitals, shelters and homes that might not be too fancy, but were filled to the brim with love.  His presents were fancy, they were bright and cheerful.  Ug finally understood how special his presents were.  As the sleigh finished its trip, Ug began to feel tired.  “Thank you Santa, this night has made me realize how much my word meant to so many.  I think it’s time.  I think I can go now.”  Santa nodded, his eyes filled with tears.  “Where would you like to go Ug, I can take you anywhere in the world?”  Ug thought back on all the wondrous things he had just seen, all the spectacular places.  He knew only one place would do.  “Take me home.”  Santa began the long trek back to the North Pole.  He was in no hurry.  His deliveries were done, this ride was for Ug.  When they reached the North Pole Ug asked Santa to land on a beautiful undisturbed mountain top.  He climbed out of the sleigh and walked to the edge.  Ug looked in wonder at the beauty that reached as far as he could see.  He closed his eyes.  Santa watched in awe as Ug began to glow.  He got brighter and brighter.  Finally Santa had to look away.  He heard a quiet pop, and Ug was gone.  Santa looked around and saw that the snow was glistening.  It had a sparkle like none he had ever seen.  Santa wiped away his tears and chuckled to himself.  He would miss his friend very much. 

When Santa got home there were tears and sadness, but it couldn’t last because here was next Christmas to get ready for.  A few weeks went by and Santa was sitting in his office writing about the very special Christmas he had just had when he heard a small knock on his door.  “Yes, come in.”  Santa said.  The door opened and a small elf came in.  She was small, very small even for an elf.  Her clothes were quite unkempt and she would only look at the floor.  Santa put down his book and quietly said, “What do you need child?”  The elf continued to look at the floor, she shuffled her feet nervously.  “I don’t fit in here Santa.  I have tried so very hard.  I don’t like the noise, I don’t care for green or red, I prefer pink.  Even if the other elves are not mean they just don’t understand me.  I was wondering if I could have a nice, quiet job and just stay out of the way.”  Santa didn’t know what to say, his heart skipped a beat.  He stood up and went to the window.  The snow was sparkling in the twilight.  His breath caught in his throat.  Could it be that Ug was trying to tell him something?  He turned to the tiny elf and quietly asked, “May I ask your name little one?”  The elf looked up at Santa, her brown eyes sparkled just like the snow outside.  “My name is Princess.”  Santa’s heart beat a little faster when he whispered,  “Well my little Princess I think I have just the job for you.”  And with that he began to tell a story.  A story of a very special elf, a very special job and why the snow sparkles just so at twilight.