Maggie’s Musings

My, it’s snowing up a storm today. I decided to stay home rather than brave the snow-clogged streets to get into my office. When you work for yourself, a vacation doesn’t really exist but you need to take one from time to time anyway. So, I guess today will be my winter vacation day. It’s not much, I’ll grant you, but it’s necessary at this point. The snow storm came just at the right time!

Della, Alex and I did a little Hanukkah and Christmas shopping the other day. I’m afraid I may have been the one to introduce my husband to “Christma-kkah,” that curious shopping enhancement that Christian spouses, friends, etc., spring on their unsuspecting Jewish mates. I’m sure before he met me, Alex exchanged the usual small tokens that are much more typical of Hanukkah. Since then, we’ve been St-Nicking it up big time. His parents have been very gracious about it, perhaps enjoying the indulgence of their “inner shopper” as well. Be that as it may, we had an invitation to dinner that weekend and decided we didn’t want to come empty handed.

Alex picked up Della on his way home from work and the three of us bundled up for our seasonal excursion. Fortunately, there’s a gift shop almost directly across the street from my house so the trek in the cold was not over-taxing. Divinity’s Splendour Glow had been there for years and I fell in love with the place the minute I walked in the door. It was small, with a warm wood floor and charm beyond charm. I remember walking down aisles of multi-colored scarves, bubbling tranquility fountains, earth-toned hand made bowls, candles, statues and scents. The greeting cards were nice, too, along with the kids’ stuff. Alex had to practically drag me out of there by my hair.

Meanwhile, Della was a bit nervous about going out in the dark - being nearly blind is tough anytime, but at night she lost everything. Nonetheless, she said she wanted to come along. It had been a while since she’d Christmas shopped anywhere other than her computer. She missed the interpersonal side. Actually, the main challenge would be for me, since the shop was small - charming, but small. I usually led Della with us nearly two-abreast. She placed a hand on my shoulder and walked slightly behind me. That was sure to throw a vase or tranquility fountain onto the floor.

Alex finally suggested I just call the shop and ask them if it would be okay to bring Della. I knew the owner, a fellow entrepreneur with whom we stood our own two-abreast against the big-box, corporate world. I did my gift shopping at her place, she had me proofread and layout her newsletters. It worked for both of us. Who needed to send money to global headquarters in London or Los Angeles?

I picked up the phone. “Hey, it’s Maggie Szczep,” I said. “Got a question for you.”

“Hi, Maggie!” The shop owner, Renuka, replied. “What’s up, my dear?”

“I have a friend who’s almost blind and she’d like to check out your shop. I’m a little concerned about her breaking anything. Do you have any ideas? She’s a really good shopper.” That part I whispered.

She laughed. “Just as long as she pays for what she breaks, that’s fine with me!”

“Very funny,” I chuckled. “Usually she hangs onto my backpack when we’re in tight quarters, or I take the tip of her cane and guide her that way. So far, we’ve had no problems. Believe me, I grow eyes in the back of my head whenever we’re out. I don’t want her to go plowing into anything, either. That hurts, and more than just her pride.”

Renuka thought for a minute, conferred with another store clerk, then came back to the phone. “Tell you what,” she said. “It’s a week night, it’s not too crowded. Come on over, we’ll keep an eye out. I wouldn’t recommend you coming on Saturday but Wednesday night? I think we’ll manage.”

“Thanks!” I said, and meant it.

“No problem,” she said. “We’ll see you in a few.”

Alex wrapped himself in scarves and sweaters while I helped Della bundle up. “You’re sure it’ll be okay?” she asked, a bit nervous. “I’d hate to break anything.”

“Not to worry,” I assured her. “I cleared it with Renuka. We’ll take care of you.”

“But what about her dishes and statues?”

“Walk behind me and we’ll be fine.” Shopping with Della could be a challenge in tight quarters. It frustrated her no end. I tried to reassure her as best I could and felt a second pair of eyes springing through the hair behind my ears. I didn’t let her back away from challenges like that and, ultimately, she appreciated it. We all have our own interpretation of “normalcy.” For her, it often meant being able to walk through a small shop without breaking anything and humiliating herself. I re-tied her scarf - my own nervous gesture - and told her not to worry about it.

Alex led the way across the street, making sure Della could go at her own pace without getting run down. The cold was offset a bit by holiday lights strung across the trees in Arlington Center and along Massachusetts Avenue. I particularly enjoyed the site from inside the warmth of my car. Still, there was a pleasant immediacy in walking directly beneath them. Della said she could make out something light, but had no idea what it was or how it really looked. I patted her hand on my shoulder and walked the rest of the way to the store.

Renuka stood at the door, smiling. We walked in and made the round of introductions. “Thank you for letting me come,” Della said in a shy voice.

“My pleasure!” Renuka replied. “You just let me know if you have any questions and I’ll be glad to help.”

“Hmmm,” Della mused. “Do you have jewelery? And do you mind if I use a flash light to look at it?”

I led Della to the front of the store and let her look for items which interested her. A shop clerk took out various pieces for Della to examine. Meanwhile, Alex and I perused the store, looking at a variety of potential Hanukkah gifts for his folks. A half hour later I had picked out Christmas presents for my mother, my father, my sister, my brother, my sister-in-law and my brother-in-law. Alex was still looking at baby blankets for our new-born nephew and had no idea that greeting cards were right behind him. I’d looked over at jewelery for his mom and a blue-brown hand-made serving bowl with a geometric cracked glaze. I’d pondered candles and fancy menorahs, still waiting for my husband to look up from the CD rack. I finally walked over to him. “I thought we were buying a Hanukkah present for your parents?” I asked.

He totally ignored me and looked over in fascination at a multi-striped, snuggly baby blanket. “What about this for Sam?” he asked.

“Sam’s already got a baby blanket,” I replied.

“Well, he doesn’t have one from us.”

“Alex, the kid’s two months old. He doesn’t know from baby blankets or who they’re from.”

Alex showed me a few CDs. “Maybe we should get one of these for Ed and Janet.”

I rolled my eyes. “Sam’s parents aren’t going to be interested in a baby blanket and a baby CD,” I observed.

“Well, it would be for the baby.” He pondered. I worried. “Or, maybe we should get something for them, too. Along with this stuff, I mean.”

I decided to switch tactics. “First, can I show you the stuff I was looking at for your parents?”

Alex looked up. “My parents? Oh, right!” He followed behind me to the blue-brown bowl. I also showed him the smaller items I wanted to pick up for my family’s Christmas. He nodded and then settled in at the bowls, examining one, then the other, then the first, then another one after that.

I figured I was good for at least 30 minutes, so I wandered back to Della to see how she was going. She and the shop clerk were going at it mile-a-minute, with Della chatting about this or that friend and the clerk swapping out jewelry and scarf samples and matching them for price and taste. They both looked like they were having the time of their lives. Now they were talking about Della’s hair, pure white and cut short. It was the usual it’s-beautiful/I-hate-it back and forth conversation. I barged right in. “So, how you guys doing?” I asked.

“Oh great!” the woman replied. Renuka smiled from where she stood nearby and rang up another customer. “We’re trying to find some necklaces or bracelets and accessories for a few of Della’s friends. I’m helping her select colors,” the shop clerk continued. Della couldn’t see colors to save her life. “We’re trying to see what might go with this…” The woman showed me a gold, large-beaded necklace and two matching scarves. They were both gorgeous. Like a lot of folks, I got a great deal of satisfaction out of vicarious shopping. We’d do Della’s Christmas shopping and, at the end, she’d get to pay for it all. Worked for me.

Alex, on the other hand, was holding two bowls and I could smell something burning in the vicinity of my wallet. He had the baby blanket under one arm and a CD tucked in there, too. I walked back to him - quickly. “So,” I said. “What do you think?”

“These are really nice,” he enthused. “I love this geometric pattern.”

“So, should we get that?”

“On the other hand, my mother does like earth tones and this one is more brown.” He lifted up a different bowl. “Can you wash these in the dish washer?”

I gave Alex a look that he completely missed, fortunately. “No,” I said simply. “What about a Hanukkah card?”

“Okay.” He turned back to the bowls, then got distracted by a jewelery box.

I walked back to Della and her personal sales associate. “What do you think, Maggie?” Della asked, looking extremely satisfied with herself. “Four matching sets!” I examined a tasteful assortment of necklaces, bracelets and scarves. “Three for Christmas and one for Hanukkah.”

“Lovely!” I said.

“Lovely!” The sales clerk echoed. “Shall I gift wrap those for you?”

Della nodded and with a “thank you” handed the assortment to the clerk. “How about you and Alex?” She asked.

I thought for a moment. “Good thing it’s Wednesday,” I said. “By Saturday we should be ready to make a purchase.”

Della rolled her eyes. “Oh dear,” she said. “I thought he hated shopping.”

“I thought so too. He’s got this baby blanket for our nephew that he hangs onto like Linus in Peanuts. Hang in there, Del. I need to collect my husband…if he’ll be collected.” I walked back to Alex, still examining bowls and baby blankets. “Well?” I asked. “Made any decisions?”

“What do you think?” he asked.

“I like the geometric patterned bowl,” I said. “I think it would look great in their dining room.”

He put the other ones down. “Okay,” he said. “Let’s get this. And the baby blanket and the CD for Ed and Janet.”

“For Sam.”

“Uh, yea. Same thing.”

We brought our purchases to the register and Renuka starting ringing us up. “Where’s the card for your folks?” I asked, looking around.

“I thought you were going to get it,” Alex replied.

I wasn’t ready press the “kill switch” yet, but I was starting to get close. “They’re your parents and it’s your holiday! For God’s sake.” Were we about to embark on a 25 minute card hunt? “Do you give me permission to choose a card and just bring it to the cash register?”

“Yup,” he said.

Good, no protracted negotiations there. I walked quickly to the back and picked out a card I’d been looking at before, then added it to the pile of Christmas cards already on the table. Renuka rang them up, along with the bowl, the baby blanket, the CD and the presents I’d chosen for my family. Della had already rung up her purchases and stood near the door, smiling and bundled up. “Thank you so much,” Renuka said. “I really appreciate your business.”

I smiled back at her. “We’ll be back. I don’t need to buy something made in China. I’ll keep my money right in town, thank you very much.” That was a point of pride with me. If people were going to pay me and not some outfit in Oklahoma for my services, why not return the favor? The world was getting too big. You took care of your friends, your family, your neighbors. I wish we all did that: the world would be a happier and a safer place. I hoped so, anyway.

Purchases in-hand, we returned to the cold outside the shop door and headed for home. Della was tired and Alex insisted on driving her back, even though I’d offered. “You’re tired, too,” he told me. “You get ready for bed. I’ll take this lady home.”

Della and I hugged each other goodbye, before she slipped a small bag around my wrist. “That’s for later,” she whispered, then felt her way into Alex’s car. I stood at the front porch, braving the cold for a moment longer, and watched Alex pull out of the driveway and onto the street. He was a good man. I was a lucky woman. Della’s bag still hung from my wrist. I let myself back in the house and turned on the hallway light, letting myself warm up a bit before taking off my coat. I pulled down my hood and removed my gloves, then looked in the bag. Inside were two small boxes, one for me and one for Alex. Inside was a card with an envelope that read: “open now.” I pulled it out and opened it, per Della’s instructions. Inside was a note, written in Renuka’s hand:

Dear Maggie and Alex: Ms. O’Connell graciously wrote this out on one of her cards, since I didn’t have a thick felt-tip pen handy. I know I can be an old sourpuss sometimes, but your friendship means the world to me. These aren’t from the shop, but from an old, old place in my heart - the part of my heart you’ve come to fill. Thank you for taking me to the shop this evening. It’s been so long since I’ve had the chance to do something like that again. Just walking in the door and hearing door chimes ring nearly brought me to tears. The floor felt nice, too, not linoleum or concrete. It must be lovely inside. There were some nice scents. I was able to see most of the jewelry, too. I was pleasantly surprised. Sometimes the smallest things are what give us the most joy. It felt nice not to order online this year. It felt nice to be out in the cold and to smell pine again. You’re both the greatest. Love, Della.

Well, I thought. No matter what was in those little boxes, I knew I had my Christmas present right there in my hand. I felt a warmth from the inside spreading to meet up with the warmth seeping in from the room. I took off my coat and boots, slipped into sneakers and then went to the tree and plugged it in. I sat down with a small glass of egg nog and looked at the lights for a long, long time.