Donald is a six-year-old boy who lives in New York, but is taking the train to visit his extended family nearby for Christmas. With him is his father, who is stern and cold, and his mother, who is a bit more lenient and warm, though she must appease her husband's wishes. When they arrive, Donald is excited to see his uncles and kisses both, but his father chastises him, telling him to calm down and that men shake hands, but they don't kiss. They get to the house where Donald's aunts, uncles, and grandma will be celebrating with them. The next day, it is Christmas, and when Donald is opening his presents it is apparent that one of his uncles went above and beyond, spending exorbitant amounts of money on presents for him, much to the father and mother's dismay. The father tells Donald to pack up his presents all again so that he can bring them back to New York and to put them away, with Mr. Gordon, the generous gifter, commenting on how Donald obeys as if out of fear. Later, at dinner, a fight breaks out between an aunt and the father, with her telling him that he needs to lighten up on Donald. The fight escalates until the mother abandons the table for her room, with the father following quickly after her. Donald knows that his father will beat her in private. Later, when father and son are on a walk in the snow, Donald refuses to obey his father when he tells him to throw a snowball, prompting him to smother his face in snow, though Donald doesn't care because he's become detached and believes that if he holds his breath long enough he'll just die instead. Donald bids farewell to his relatives, then that night looks out his window and sees a wolf. He goes out to the wolf and embraces it, then the two of them run off into the wild.