Hang onto your pumpkins. Christmas is coming and not a day too
soon. The Christmas catalogs have already arrived. TV ads and TV
news media have already mentioned the
”
H
”
word.
”
Holiday
”
shoppers will soon find the Halloween candy hasn’t even been
passed out and I can almost bet you haven’t even made the first
pumpkin pie of the year. But that won’t stop the holiday hype.
Hang onto your pumpkins. Christmas is coming and not a day too soon. The Christmas catalogs have already arrived. TV ads and TV news media have already mentioned the “H” word. “Holiday” shoppers will soon find the Halloween candy hasn’t even been passed out and I can almost bet you haven’t even made the first pumpkin pie of the year. But that won’t stop the holiday hype.
As parents, we know as soon as the Halloween costumes are pulled off the shelf, stores will immediately embellish their shopping aisles with Christmas cards and colored tinsel, snowflake angels and Hanukkah candles. Things to remind us the seasons have begun.
Parents of small children are doomed to bankruptcy by the relentless pleas for everything the child sees on the shelves. Somewhere it must be written that parents shall be hounded to do the Christmas countdown all the way until Christmas Eve – even if the child is 14 years old.
Commercialism is the driving force behind those whiney voices of wants and needs. Making children aware of the upcoming holidays only prompts them to ask the question, which seems reasonable, at the time, “How many days before it’s Christmas?”
However, by time Christmas arrives, the question is more like an annoying bellyache that won’t go away.
“I can’t take it anymore,” my daughter groaned as she rolled on the floor. “When is Christmas going to get here? It takes too long.”
In translation, what she really was saying is she was tired of being extra good to score those brownie points for whatever gift she was pitching for that Christmas.
Agitated, I answered, “You’re supposed to be good all year long, not just because it’s Christmas.”
Children want toys even if they have nearly everything under the sun. And like every other parent, it bugs me when children get sucked up into the commercial aspect of the holidays. Often I would have my children clear out their unused, still in the package toys and pass them on to other children who were having a rough Christmas.
It bothered them at first, that I would give their things away. But after explaining why it is better to give than receive, they understood and willingly offered their things.
When you are a child, Christmas is a long time to wait, but for parents, it comes too soon. There are plans to be made, gifts to buy, family dinners and office parties to attend. Of course, Jim and I are no different. We are swept up in the spirit of the season already. Christmas can’t come soon enough for us here at Linda’s Last Chance Ranch and I bet you 250 dinars (Iraqi currency) you can’t guess why. On the other hand, maybe you just did.
My Christmas gift this year is the redeployment of Spc. E-4 Ryan T. King – my son is coming home. The other day I got a call on the “big cell phone” in Iraq from my son.
“Eight more weeks‚ mom,” he said. “I’ve already started packing a few of my things.”
Two months doesn’t seem like a long time to wait, but it is when you’re waiting for someone to come home from a dangerous land.
Jim and I feel just like anxious children, counting the days until Ryan plants his feet on American soil. We have been fixing up a place for Ryan where he will stay while attending college. We also have plans to take him around to meet people.
Jim keeps teasing me that as a mom I can’t give him the gift he really wants because that’s “none of his mother’s business.”
“Oh, that explains why he asked me if I knew anyone close to his age,” I replied.
“Believe me,” Jim said. “I’m sure he has his own agenda.”
Christmas is the season of giving. My son has already given up one Christmas during his first tour of duty in Kuwait. Now it’s my turn. I want him back home, safe and sound. Yes, we have a lot to do around here at Linda’s Last Chance Ranch before Ryan gets home, but in the meantime, we pray for his safe return.
Linda Lee King can be reached at wi*******@ju**.com
