Tis the season

Even my morning dose of Drudge can not remove the lump in my throat. Oh, I know that air jordans on sale in some far away place caused a shopper melee.

But the lump in my throat was put there by the Layaway Angels as they are now being called. These are the ones who are quietly showing up at discount retailers and paying off the layaway balances for people in need.

An act of Goodwill that brings tears to my eyes. You would have had to have been there at some point to know why this tears my eyes. There being poor or distressed. I was one of nine children and there were a couple of Christmases where under tree was limited to say the least. Underwear and socks were not out of the realm for Christmas gifts. This was 1950s style Christmas , where a basketball or a baseball glove or a pair of ice skates would be the norm. There were no I Pods, Pads , laptops, Playstations , Northface or Patagonia. I remember underwear and socks one year. It was also the year that a child was born into our house with medical issues. It was about that time that our struggling Dad , pressured by his responsibilities , taught us the important lesson of gratitude---When someone gives you a gift, regardless of how small or insignificant--You say Thank You and nothing but Thank you.

I see Layaway Angels trying to say thank you in their own sweet way. I see people crying over a 20 dollar doll and it is bringing tears to my eyes. My wife and I are not in the same league as the layaway angels, but we try and do something for the homeless and the church giving tree every year. It is nice to know that people are out there trying. It is just something that marks us as a society clinging to civility.
A few dollars in the kettle, a couple of bucks to the panhandlers I run into are not going to break the bank, but everytime I reach into my pocket I am reminded that even with the brutal economic demands I do not have it so bad.

So last night when my son came home, he got me teary eyed again, he said the last Christmas tree of the night that he sold started a lady crying. She came in to the Garden Center where he works with her husband. At this time, a day before Christmas the manager tells the kids to move the trees at any price, the season is over and he knows that the late tree buyers are usually in tough straits. So the couple came in and the tree was 20 dollars, they hesitated, and my son then told them that it was now half price . The lady started crying, for she said they could afford 10 dollars but not anymore and she did not think they would have a tree for their children this year. They did, and I got another gift for Christmas, the feeling that people are out there wishing and hoping for Peace on Earth and Good Will to Men.

Merry Christmas.