Monday, November 23, 2009

do i have enough

TOOTHLESS GRIN

I was doing some last-minute Christmas shopping in a toy store and decided
to look at Barbie dolls for my nieces. A nicely-dressed little girl was
excitedly looking through the Barbie dolls as well, with a roll of money
clamped tightly in her little hand. When she came upon a Barbie she liked,
she would turn and ask her father if she had enough money to buy it. He
usually said "yes," but she would keep looking and keep going through their
ritual of "do I have enough?"

As she was looking, a little boy wandered in across the aisle and started
sorting through the Pokemon toys.

He was dressed neatly, but in clothes that were obviously rather worn, and
wearing a jacket that was probably a couple of sizes too small. He, too,
had money in his hand, but it looked to be no more than five dollars or so,
at the most. He was with his father as well, and kept picking up the
Pokemon video toys. Each time he picked one up and looked at his father,
his father shook his head, "no."

The little girl had apparently chosen her Barbie, a beautifully dressed,
glamorous doll that would have been the envy of every little girl on the
block.

However, she had stopped and was watching the interchange between the little
boy and his father. Rather dejectedly, the boy had given up on the video
games and had chosen what looked like a book of stickers instead. He and
his father then started walking through another aisle of the store.

The little girl put her Barbie back on the shelf, and ran over to the
Pokemon games. She excitedly picked up one that was lying on top of the
other toys, and raced toward the checkout, after speaking with her father.

I picked up my purchases and got in line behind them. Then, much to the
little girl's obvious delight, the little boy and his father got in line
behind me.

After the toy was paid for and bagged, the little girl handed it back to the
cashier and whispered something in her ear. The cashier smiled and put the
package under the counter.

I paid for my purchases and was rearranging things in purse when the little
boy came up to the cashier. The cashier rang up his purchases and then
said, "Congratulations, you are my hundredth customer today, and you win a
prize!" With that, she handed the little boy the Pokemon game, and he could
only stare in disbelief.

It was, he said, exactly what he had wanted! The little girl and her father
had been standing at the doorway during all of this, and I saw the biggest,
prettiest, toothless grin on that little girl that I have ever seen in my
life Then they walked out the door, and I followed, close behind them.

As I walked back to my car, in amazement over what I had just witnessed, I
heard the father ask his daughter why she had done that. I'll never forget
what she said to him.

"Daddy, didn't Nana and PawPaw want me to buy something that would make me
happy?"

He said, "Of course they did, honey."

To which the little girl replied, "Well, I just did!"

With that, she giggled and started skipping toward their car. Apparently,
she had decided on the answer to her own question of, "do I have enough?"

I feel very privileged to have witnessed the true spirit of Christmas in
that toy store, in the form of a little girl who understands more about the
reason for the season than most adults I know!

May God bless her and her parents, just as she blessed that little boy, and
me, that day!

Merry Christmas All

Author Unknown

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