My family loves to play games at Christmas.

We play board games and we play Bingo for prizes and we’ve even done projects- like one year we made a Christmas Cookie Tree and on another we made a gingerbread house.

When I was little we used to show off our talents, like singing or magic tricks.

My favorite games were and still Parlor Games- like Charades and Pass The Orange.

One year I found a great new  game to play  and for the game I decorated a  box- which I had wrapped with Christmas Paper ( Santa Claus and his Reindeer of course ) and I put little bells along the top so that when you opened it, the little bells would ring.

I thought that was a nice touch.

In fact, I even baked  shortbread cookies and shaped them like stars and snowmen so that they could have something to nibble on while I explained this new and fun Parlor Game.

When it was time for games I stood up near the fireplace- because that’s where the treats and prizes for the games were set and I held my little box in front of me and said,

” This year I found a new game for us to play and everything we need to play is in my Christmas Game Kit, ” I held the box up and shook it a little so the bells would ring.

I had everyone’s attention- which was good because most of the  family  visited my Aunt and Uncle’s wine cellar a few times and they were a little foggy at this point.

I put the box down on the table and picked up my plate of cookies which I had even frosted and passed them around and then I continued.

” The game I thought we could play is called Murder In The Dark ”

As they ate their cookies I explained how the game was played.

My Grandfather reached for his glass of wine. ” Oh. I know this game.  I didn’t realize you needed props for  it. We didn’t, did we Irene?” he asked his sister.

I stood there with my  box wrapped in Christmas paper and decorated with  little jingle bells and when I gave it a little shake and you could hear the clattering and tinkling of what I had put in there for our game of Murder.

It sounded very festive and musical, if I don’t say so myself.

One of my cousins got up and headed for the door, ” Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I think we should give her game a try.”

And we did.

You can read about it in a few places like books about unsolved mysteries and abnormal psychology- but remember no matter what you read it really is ok to play Murder any way you want.

 

From The Holidailies Prompt: Christmas Games