While the whole world was opening all their presents on Christmas morning there was one gift which remains unopened in Edmonton, Canada.
The gift in question happens to belong to Adrian Pearce, who was given a gift 47 years ago by an ex-girlfriend named Vicky.
It may seem petty that Pearce, who has been married and has had children since the ‘traumatic break-up’, has left his Christmas present in its original wrapping paper after all these years but he does have a valid explanation behind it.
Back in 1970, when he was still a 12th Grade student at George S. Henry Secondary School in Don Mills in suburban Toronto, a 17-year-old Pearce received the mysterious gift from his then-girlfriend Vicki. Upon receiving the gift she immediately broke up with him.
To quote Dave Chapelle’s caricature of Rick James ‘that was cold-blooded’.
Speaking to CBC News Pearce said:
She gave me a present at the same time and I took the present home. I had a long walk home and I was all upset and angry, and all the things you feel when somebody breaks up with you.
And so I fired the present under the Christmas tree. After my family opened their gifts at Christmas, there was still one Christmas gift left and it’s the gift this girl Vicki had given me. I told my family I’m never going to open that present.
Pearce says Vicky’s younger sister got in contact with him a few years after they broke up, giving him some contact numbers as she said her sister wanted to meet up with him again. When the former lovers did meet they realised the spark was no longer there and they soon lost contact with each other again.
Since then he’s made a Christmas tradition (of sorts) to place her gift under his tree, which his wife, Janet, wasn’t pleased with. Who can blame her, if your spouse is placing an unopened gift given to you by your ex under the Christmas tree every year alarm bells should be ringing.
According to CBC, she eventually ‘put her foot down and said it wasn’t welcome under the tree anymore’. You know what? More power to her.
Pearce went onto say:
I kept it initially because I guess I had hopes that we would get back together and open it together. Now it’s just become a habit after 47 years of looking at it and having the pleasure of not opening it.
Maybe I don’t want to know what’s inside it. It’s more exciting right now not opening the thing.
Pearce’s wife has since cooled to the idea of him putting the mystery gift under their tree and is quite intrigued herself to see what’s underneath all that wrapping paper.
He told CBC that he is considering opening up the gift on its 50th Anniversary (which would be in three years time). He even hopes to get in contact with Vicky again so she can be there when he eventually opens it.
In a Facebook post-Mike wrote:
Even though I vowed 47 years ago to never open the gift, I might consider doing so on the 50th anniversary. The icing on the cake (so to speak) would be finding this woman and having her join the celebration.
If you want my advice, heed the immortal, and somewhat polarising words of Kylo Ren from Star Wars: The Last Jedi: ‘Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to…’.
In other words; open up that damn present already Pearce, it’s been 47 years!
