Watching my kids prepare for Christmas the last couple of years is a gift in itself. As a parent, I have spent the last 17 years playing Santa and watching with anticipation as each gift is opened.
Now, as my kids mature, I see them wanting to put that same care into giving. Galen, my older son, asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I thought of the standard parental response: Oh you know, peace, love and happiness - don't worry about getting me anything. And then that little negative voice crept in: and he still owes me money and he's going to spend his whole paycheck on gifts! BUT I could tell it really meant something to him. This was far more important than getting paid back. Who am I to deprive him of this important gift - the warmth and joy of giving to others. So I told him "I like inexpensive jewelry and things that smell nice."
Later my younger son asked if they could go to . . . THE MALL. Ugh! The week before Christmas and I thought I had dodged the Mall bullet. I asked if it was really necessary - can't you find something at Target. But he too was on a mission, to find some gifts and especially one for his girlfriend. I caught on that this is where we needed to go and off we went.
Even if I weren't disabled, going to the Mall would be a chore. The only good thing was having VIP parking in a packed parking lot! We parked, got the scooter out and away we went. Despite the Christmas shopping mania, I was determined to make it a pleasant trip. I had my flower basket on my scooter and wore my best smile. People complain of crabby shoppers at Christmas but I found everyone to be polite, caring and friendly. After my trip to the Apple Store (really the only reason to go to a Mall), I found a nice little corner to hang out in the food court while they shopped. They were gone for what seemed like hours and came back with ONE bag. One bag that I tried not to look at but I could see it was from the candle shop where of course they have things that smell nice. I realized they had hit a wall and that shopping for your first girlfriend requires a little motherly help and away we went.
Over the course of the week, they finished shopping for everyone on their list. Then came Christmas Eve. They were wrapping their presents and Galen stepped on THE bag, the bag from the candle store. Crunch! Oh no. Ben came to me and told me they had to go back to the Mall. I said don't worry about it, whatever happened, it's the thought that counts. But they were on a mission to get this right and now my husband Greg was in on it too. He put the address to the mall in the GPS and away they went on their adventure to replace the broken gift. They purchased a new item from the same store but on the way out of the store they found something even better. They made a return and purchased the perfect gift for Mom.
Later that evening after church, Galen remembered he didn't have anything for our doggie and kitty cat. I said don't worry, I got them something and it can be from all of us. Nope. He needed to do this. Most of the stores were closed by now but he came back with some special gifts for our furry babies.
The next morning was Christmas and I'm pretty sure there has been a shift. They now sit with anticipation as we - everyone including the pets open their gifts.
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