Well, I've been a bad blogger the past few weeks. I have been taking a TON of pictures of all kinds of wonderful things (hockey practice, parent viewing week at dance, and Brownie camp amongst day-t0-day thing) and I've been so busy (darn my tendency to overcommit) that I have not had a chance to post them but this, I could not resist.
Today after hockey, we stopped at an unfamiliar grocery store at Caden's insistence. He wanted new cookies for his hockey bag (they give out cookies after each practice and, of course, he can't eat them, so we bring our own and we were out) and ketchup (because we were out of ketchup which is a serious offense in our world) and he wanted them from this particular grocery store we'd never been to before.
So we went in and the Salvation Army kettle was out with a volunteer. Caden wanted to know why. After I explained it to him he put the nickel he'd found at skating (the only money he currently has to his name) into the kettle and wished the volunteer a merry Christmas.
So now, with a light heart, we searched out our two items and went to pay. The cashier next to ours was an older gentleman with a white beard and a Santa hat. The boys looked him up and down with wiiiiiiide eyes and began whispering to each other.
The gentleman came over with something in his hand and my heart sunk. This happens to us all the time. People say "Can I give your child x" and I almost always have to say "No thank you, he can't eat that" which is heartbreaking for both of us. Well, THIS day our friendly neighbourhood Santa had candy canes. Safe for Caden. So I said yes and the joy in my heart made me realize that while I never think twice about keeping Caden safe, it is perhaps emotionally harder than I think. I smiled all the way out of the store.
We get out to the car and Duncan asks "Why Ho Ho Santa in a store?" and Caden says "I think he ran out of candy canes and had to buy more. I saw him buying something! Or MAYBE his elf is sick and he was there buying a thingy for taking your temperature, you know, a 'mometer!" They began discussing the myriad opportunities they might have to meet the man in red again before Christmas and whether, perhaps, he would give Duncan a coveted noisy bus to equal the one Caden got a few years ago (readers, this is NOT, and I really mean it, NOT an invitation to buy Duncan a noisy bus).
As crazy as that kid can make me, his imagination makes me smile every time.
So, we, the family who don't celebrate the Santa myth in our home, met Santa Clause today in Burlington, in November, and he made all of our hearts sing with a smile and a candy cane. Who knows, maybe he really was the real deal.
No comments:
Post a Comment