FOUR A.M. Darkness is well upon us. It's too cold , and too early, to be standing outside in a slight breeze with hundreds of crazy, anxious parents waiting to capture a bargain for Christmas. At least the snow hasn't come yet.
With an hour to go before the store opens the front doors, people are gathering across the parking lot road to find a gap in the seemingly endless line and slip in when the crowds begin to move. They are the special people, you know them, the ones who think that the rules are for the rest of us. We are the only ones who need to wait patiently in line. They are the ones who are so important they can butt ahead of us!
When the lady behind me in line gets into a match of wits with one of the line-crashers I just cinch up the draw string on my jacket and bite my lip. People are so funny. I don't mean in the humorous way either.
The morning's activities take me back to my teenage years. Working retail for ten years - from high school through college and young married life - made me hate the Christmas season.
Watching people push and shove, scream and scowl, trying to be the first to get that bargain kinda takes the goodness out of it all. But the worst of all was the day I had to arrest the grandmother trying to sneak out the IN door with a cart full of gifts for her grandchildren. She couldn't afford Christmas and with the pressures put on us to give, give, give, even when we can't, she resorted to attempting to steal something for her family. It was a sad day for me. The pressures of want sometimes overwhelm the voice of reason.
Ten years of Black Friday's did me in. It has only been during the last couple of years that I have been able to listen to Christmas music on the radio and hum along with the tunes on my way to work in the morning.
I remember the Christmas mornings at our house growing up. We kids would get up early and anxiously wait in our bedrooms until Mom and Dad finally gave up and got up themselves. Mom and Dad would go downstairs before us to turn on the Christmas tree lights and put on the Christmas music. We kids would line up, youngest to oldest, and on command would march down to the living room where Christmas awaited.
I can still see the picture in my mind of Christmas morning in our house. With six kids, and later one or more of the cousins, colorfully wrapped presents began at the base of the tree and flowed out into the room taking up half of the living room. There were always plenty of presents. Mom and Dad made sure of that.
Each of us found our spot as one of us passed the presents, one at a time, around the room. We all watched the current present holder open their gift. Christmas morning lasted a good long time. I remember that the presents were even coded with a number in case Santa forgot to put a name on one of them!
When it was all over we had a big Christmas breakfast and then it was get dressed and off to the neighbor kid's to see what they got from Santa Claus.
Well, this post makes it sound more like Christmas day than Black Friday... maybe it will get us all in the mood for a good Christmas season; a season of joy, and love, and remembrance; maybe we can forget the hustle and bustle of shopping and trying to make sure we get that new Nintendo game or pretty pink dolly so as not to dissappoint a young child.
With an hour to go before the store opens the front doors, people are gathering across the parking lot road to find a gap in the seemingly endless line and slip in when the crowds begin to move. They are the special people, you know them, the ones who think that the rules are for the rest of us. We are the only ones who need to wait patiently in line. They are the ones who are so important they can butt ahead of us!
When the lady behind me in line gets into a match of wits with one of the line-crashers I just cinch up the draw string on my jacket and bite my lip. People are so funny. I don't mean in the humorous way either.
The morning's activities take me back to my teenage years. Working retail for ten years - from high school through college and young married life - made me hate the Christmas season.
Watching people push and shove, scream and scowl, trying to be the first to get that bargain kinda takes the goodness out of it all. But the worst of all was the day I had to arrest the grandmother trying to sneak out the IN door with a cart full of gifts for her grandchildren. She couldn't afford Christmas and with the pressures put on us to give, give, give, even when we can't, she resorted to attempting to steal something for her family. It was a sad day for me. The pressures of want sometimes overwhelm the voice of reason.
Ten years of Black Friday's did me in. It has only been during the last couple of years that I have been able to listen to Christmas music on the radio and hum along with the tunes on my way to work in the morning.
I remember the Christmas mornings at our house growing up. We kids would get up early and anxiously wait in our bedrooms until Mom and Dad finally gave up and got up themselves. Mom and Dad would go downstairs before us to turn on the Christmas tree lights and put on the Christmas music. We kids would line up, youngest to oldest, and on command would march down to the living room where Christmas awaited.
I can still see the picture in my mind of Christmas morning in our house. With six kids, and later one or more of the cousins, colorfully wrapped presents began at the base of the tree and flowed out into the room taking up half of the living room. There were always plenty of presents. Mom and Dad made sure of that.
Each of us found our spot as one of us passed the presents, one at a time, around the room. We all watched the current present holder open their gift. Christmas morning lasted a good long time. I remember that the presents were even coded with a number in case Santa forgot to put a name on one of them!
When it was all over we had a big Christmas breakfast and then it was get dressed and off to the neighbor kid's to see what they got from Santa Claus.
Well, this post makes it sound more like Christmas day than Black Friday... maybe it will get us all in the mood for a good Christmas season; a season of joy, and love, and remembrance; maybe we can forget the hustle and bustle of shopping and trying to make sure we get that new Nintendo game or pretty pink dolly so as not to dissappoint a young child.
Maybe this year we can all remember the real meaning of Christmas - the young child lying in a manger. Peace. Love to all of you.
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