The day after Christmas is also known as Boxing Day to many around the globe. Traditionally, it was a day in which servants, tradespeople, and the poor were presented with gifts. But by the 21st century, it has become a day associated with shopping and sporting events. Today’s writing prompt is centered around the more traditional purpose of the holiday. Keep reading to see the full writing prompt and my completed version of it.
Today’s Writing Prompt: Boxing Day
Today, write a historical scene in which a wealthy person is giving a gift to their servant, or servants, on Boxing Day. Consider: Is this wealthy person genuinely generous and kind, or are they simply giving a gift to their servants out of a sense of resentful obligation? What is the gift being given?
With this writing prompt, try to show how the wealthy person feels about this holiday without saying how they feel about the holiday outright.
Completed Version of Today’s Writing Prompt
Boxing Day, by K.E. Creighton
Lady Smith had left a box of items at the bottom of the staircase leading up to the servants’ quarters this morning. On top of the box was a scrap of paper that read, “Enjoy,” in her signature calligraphy. The box included a large cracked porcelain vase, an unpolished snuff box with a broken hinge, fragments of a faded once-midnight-blue tapestry, and pieces of unidentifiable fabric from a few outdated gowns from more than three seasons ago.
Anna was the first of the servants to see the box. Well, feel the box, technically. She tripped over it on her way down the stairs in the early dawn, on her way to the kitchen to begin preparing breakfast for the house. She had to drag and push the box into the kitchen as she limped, due to her recently injured ankle, and decided to place it in the far corner near the back entrance so that it was out of the way while everyone worked. As the others started trickling in and out of the kitchen that morning, she told them about the box and what was in it. She received a few grunts and nods. And by the end of the afternoon, she noticed that the snuff box was gone.
[All Rights Reserved by K.E. Creighton and Creighton’s Compositions LLC. The above work is a piece of fiction. All names and locations referred to are the product of the author’s imagination and are used entirely for fictional purposes. Any similarities to real-life persons or places are purely coincidental.]
Notes on Completing this Writing Prompt
I’ll be honest. I’m not truly sure what to make of this holiday, or day of observance. Is it insulting? Part of me feels like it is insulting, while the other part feels as if it’s a nice way to give back. I suppose it essentially depends on who is giving what to whom, why, and how.