Zelda of Christmas Past

The Legend of Zelda has a special meaning to me. It's not because of the gameplay elements, amazing characters, or ability to attack chickens (although that one is sweet!). Travel back with me will you?

Back in '88, December 18th to be exact, I was a young tike of 9 years of age, and REALLY DESPERATELY wanted the golden game that contained such awesomeness, at any price...

My aunt and grandpa went to the Galleria (in Houston, this was the biggest mall) and I decided to tag along. They went shopping and I gravitated straight to the K-B toy store. I told my family that I would just wait there for them, and wandered around the immensely stocked eisles, and then out of the corner of my eye, I saw it. The box was golden, there was a shield and a sword on it, and I needed to have it.

I thought and thought of a way for me to get it. I had no money, but grandpa did...He wouldn't buy it....Maybe aunt Josie....she probably wouldn't either. AH-HA! I will tell grandpa that aunt Josie would pay him back for it because she is going to get that for me for xmas (even though she had no idea that she was). I grabbed him, convinced him, and procured a new adventure in my hands. By the time grandpa found out, it was too late, and I was at his house with the box opened, reading the manual, and studying the map of Hyrule.

Then the phone rang.

My mom was on the other line, she sounded wierd. When she finally was able to make semi complete sentences, she told me that there was an accident, and Bobby (fiance to her sis/my aunt) had fallen from a ladder at his warehouse job and he didn't make it...

Being an only child, video games were like my best friend. It wasn't often that I had someone to play sports with or anything that. Bobby was 18, and he would take me to my t-ball games, and play Nintendo with me, and things like that.

...I hung up after she was done, and was still kinda excited about Zelda, but didn't really understand what was going on.

As reality set in, I found myself thinking that the accident was my fault. Lying and plotting out ways to get what I want backfired and this accident was because of that. I felt guilty, sad, and angry, and since we couldn't return the opened game, vowed to play and beat any Zelda game that came out and dedicate that to Bobby.

That is why the Zelda series is special to me.