"May Christmas be full with love from family friends that gather around us. 2008 bring good health, Love Lynn" -- read a unmistakably homemade Christmas card I received from a fellow bus passenger not long ago. Lynn, as the card identified, is by no means a known friend, but rather a regular bus riding 60+ year old woman. Both Jessie & I may have had exchanged a few words with Lynn a couple different times, but really nothing more than a friendly acknowledgment. A simple 'Hi,' without the 'How are you? '
Moments before receiving this Christmas card, Lynn sat right across from me on the bus flipping through a stack of about 10 cards. I would later learn, she was probably debating which card she could part with out of this group of cards she probably made with other general individuals in mind. I didn't feel like I was one of the pre-chosen recipients, but I do believe my card acceptance made her day -- perhaps made her Christmas.
Lynn stood from her seat, approached me and said 'This is for you and your wife (Jessie)." I was shocked. I didn't even know her name until I read the card. Who am I to receive a Christmas card from who I still would call a stranger?
Since none of the cards appeared to have a personalized message, I think she was experiencing the 'good feeling' a person undergoes when they surprise someone with a thoughtful gift. Even the smallest of gifts, in this case. I think this 'good feeling' of giving a gift escalates when given to an acquaintance or complete stranger. The most memorable and influential ways of giving a gift is to give anonymously. Do not leave any clues behind; just give to give. If the person receives a gift in this fashion, they will less likely experience the pressure to reciprocate, simply because, there is no name/identified person. We also know everyone has a limited budget. There are only so many people a person can have on a Christmas list to buy gifts for, let alone, all of a sudden, have an unexpected gift exchange. The end result to 'giving an untraceable gift' can be contagious, by encouraging the recipient to do the same thing in their future.
After I accepted her crayon-drawn Christmas tree card, I thanked her, and took observation of her happiness as she handed the bus driver a card also. As the bus was making its' stops, picking up passengers, Lynn sat at the edge of her seat holding the rest of her Christmas cards with both hands in front of her resting on her knees. She was waiting and debating to see familiar riders, and then decide who gets a card.
One of such riders who was handed a card from Lynn, rejected it by saying "Hold onto it, I have a lot of stuff in my hands." At first, it didn't sound like a rejection; it sounded legit. It wasn't until her hands were freed, I noticed Lynn again restate her offering to be rejected twice. It wasn't a downright rejection, instead, it was tainted with guilt-felt dishonesty. This woman rejecting the card said to Lynn "You know what, I have something for you too, but I'm just not done with it. If you are going to be riding the bus later, I will finish it, and then we can exchange gifts." I knew it was a lie, because this lady, like myself, didn't really know Lynn. To me, this was evident by her first not accepting the card, and then asking Lynn how she even spelled her name. She probably later had gotten off the bus and quickly made her version of a thoughtful Christmas card.
By the end of the conversation between Lynn and this other lady, they agreed to meet on this particular bus route at 5 o'clock p.m.. Me witnessing this, made me think perhaps that was a large part of what Lynn qualifies her time as Christmas. For Lynn's sake, I hope from what I thought was evident was nothing more than an even better Christmas, because she has a close fellow bus riding friend who cared enough to think about her during this Christmas season. What Is Your Christmas like?
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