A Christmas Tale
I was heading out of the house to make a deposit at the bank when my wife intercepted me and asked if I’d take her hundred-dollar bill and bring back 20 five-dollar bills. I absent-mindedly agreed and stuffed the hundred in my pocket.
At the bank, while the teller was processing the deposit, I searched my pockets and realized I had lost the hundred. I figured it fell out when I was retrieving my keys or my wallet. Unhappy with myself, I took a hundred out of my wallet and handed it to the teller.
As she made change, a man in work clothes walked in and strode to my position, even though other tellers were available. He thrust both arms toward me and said, “Lose something?” In his hands was my hundred, stretched tight.
He handed it over and quickly left as I shouted, “Thank you!” The head teller at the next window said, “Well, you’re not going to see that very often!” My teller said, “How about that?!”
Out in the lot, I saw a truck pulling away, which I think was driven by the man who returned my money. I served two years as chair of the planning board in town, and recognized the vehicle as belonging to the department of pubic works. As I recall, the average pay there was about $35,000 a year.
This is a Christian Holiday. It’s not the exact birth of Christ, but it’s been designated as the time to observe that birth. It was originally a pagan holiday, and any pagans out there are free to observe what rites they might. But to deny “Christmas” as Christian is as silly as calling a Christmas Tree a “Holiday Tree,” which our confused governor here insists on doing so as not to offend a single non-Christian, while offending a couple of billion or so Christians around the world.
In a time of strife and uncertainty, it’s wonderful to see someone doing what is right, not expecting a thing for it, and creating joy in the process for others. I regard it as a personal reminder from God to me, a sign that I need to heed.
Merry Christmas.
© Alan Weiss 2012
