For Wilshire Baptist Church
I just came in out of the rain after giving up on an errand to buy George Gagliardi one of those large plastic bags to cover and dispose of a Christmas tree when the season is over. You put the bag down around the trunk before you put it in the tree stand, and then you pull it up over the tree and it keeps the needles and sap from leaving a sticky messy path to your door as you drag it out. I was wanting to get the bag today because George doesn’t have a car, and tomorrow I’m going to help him get his tree into his apartment. It’s a decade-long tradition I enjoy very much.
My first stop was the new Ace Hardware Store in our neighborhood. We’ve been watching them get it ready for months, and it finally opened last week. I looked online and Google said Ace has the bags. But guess what: This Ace doesn’t have any Christmas supplies at all. The young guy who found me looking around said they’ll have Christmas stuff in next week. “A little slow to the game,” I thought as I walked out.
So, I drove back toward home and stopped at Kroger for gas. While the fuel was flowing, I checked Google to see if Kroger has the bags. It said they do at a store in Rowlett, but I don’t live in Rowlett. Still, I decided to go inside and check my Garland store. They didn’t have the bags, and in fact this store barely had more Christmas in stock than Ace.
I headed for the door and walked out to find it raining hard. My iPhone said it would end in 36 minutes. My umbrella was stored safely in the car, of course, and impatient as I sometimes am, I raced across the parking lot and fell into the driver’s seat with my hair soaking wet. Which is interesting, because just two months ago I didn’t have enough hair on my head to get wet. That’s progress!
Sitting in the car, watching the rain pouring down outside and the water dripping off my head into my lap, I made a decision: I wasn’t going to spend another minute looking for a Christmas tree disposal bag in the rain. And, I decided I wouldn’t worry about getting one before we get George’s tree because I realized I had it all backwards.
There I was, making plans to get rid of the Christmas tree before it’s even bought. A couple of weeks earlier, I was grumbling about the stores stocking Christmas before Thanksgiving, and now it’s the last day of November and I’m already thinking about dragging Christmas out the door to the trash. Who am I to call anyone out for starting Christmas too early?
I need to slow down and just let Christmas happen in whatever way it happens. How about you?