After seeing his old countinghouse and his own neglected grave, Scrooge realizes that it was he who lay on the bed in the cold, stripped room with no one to mourn his death. Scrooge begs the spirit that it should not be so, vowing that he will change, that he will forever honor Christmas in his heart. He makes a desperate grasp for the phantom’s hand and realizes that the ghost has shriveled away and dwindled into a bedpost. Scrooge bounds out of bed and thanks Jacob Marley’s ghost for his chance to make amends. Dashing into the street, he realizes that it is Christmas Day.