Who is the narrator of "A Christmas Memory"?

In Truman Capote's novella, "A Christmas Memory," the narrator is seven year-old Buddy.  Buddy is living with relatives and this is a memoir of his time while there.  He tells us about his elderly cousin and there adventures while preparing for Christmas.  The story is told in the first person and Buddy shares his feelings and his love for his Cousin.  This story is humorous, sad and emotional.  It often brings me to tears when I share it with my students.  Buddy is a wonderful character and, according to Capote is loosely based on his own childhood.

"Throughout "A Christmas Memory" the narrator refers to himself only in the first person (I, me, myself), but his friend calls him Buddy "in memory of a boy who was formerly her best friend" and who had died when she was a child."

Who is the narrator of "A Christmas Memory" and what is his age during the events?

The narrator for this story is Buddy. Because he narrates the story in first person, he always uses "I" and "me," and not his actual name. His real name is not "Buddy." His cousin simply calls him that because her previous best friend, one who died in the 1880's, used to be named Buddy, and now she calls him that as well.

On page one of the story he tells us that he is seven years old in the memory, but he is narrating the story as a young adult. We do not know how old the narrator is when he is telling the story, but it appears he is still in military school based on the last passage of the story.

"That is why, walking across a school campus on this particular December morning, I keep searching the sky. As if I expected to see, rather like hearts, a lost pair of kites hurrying toward heaven" (Capote).