For most people, holiday shopping is a chore that we can now call complete. Except for the last minute shoppers, packages are purchased and wrapped.

If it was like any other year, shopping for Christmas 2002 was a mix of headaches and pleasantries. Of waiting in line and finding just the right gift to create a smile.

Too often, we remember the headaches and inconveniences. It is the smiles and pleasantries that really identify the spirit and love of the season. They are plentiful. And, some, unexpected and especially memorable.

Tammy Allen has a holiday story to tell.

She wanted to surprise her husband with a new television set for Christmas, so she went to Sears and selected a large one, one that her husband and two sons knew about. Although it was a Christmas present, Tammy’s boys, Eli and Jed, pleaded with her to drive to Sears on Thursday to pick up the set. She agreed, and they headed to Lewiston from their home in Buckfield.

On the way into the city, the family’s truck broke down and they had to return home. The boys were disappointed, so when Tammy’s husband, Bob, came home from work they decided to go to Lewiston and pick up the television, hoping it would fit in the family’s small car.

It wouldn’t.

The family even took the television out of the box and unpacked the protective styrofoam, but the set was simply too big.

There, struggling in the parking lot the Christmas present became a source of frustration. Until Sue LaRochelle walked up.

This woman, who lives in Lewiston, could see clearly that the family was struggling and that the set was never going to fit in the car.

Even though she didn’t know exactly where Buckfield was, Sue immediately offered to truck the television to the Allen home.

The Allens didn’t want to inconvenience this generous stranger, but they could see no other way to get the set home, so they agreed.

After loading the television, Tammy got in Sue’s truck and Bob drove his car home. The two women talked the entire drive back to Buckfield. It was like we were old friends, Tammy said, still marveling at the kindness Sue offered.

After the three got the television unloaded, Bob and Tammy offered $25 to Sue for her trouble. Sue refused the offer, offered a Merry Christmas to the family and headed back to Lewiston. As she drove way, Tammy said she remembers thinking “who says goodwill toward men is gone?”

It isn’t. It lives in people like Sue LaRochelle, but it does occasionally get lost in the hustle and bustle of our days. Not just during the holiday season, but throughout the year.

As we move into the new year we’re going to hear more talk of war, the struggling economy and other woes of our modern world. But we’ll also be surprised by simple kindnesses offered to us by friends, family and strangers. These gestures of compassion that connect the human spirit are what bind our society.

We wish you, our readers, a very Merry Christmas and hope kindness will mark your lives in 2003.
jmeyer@sunjournal.com

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