The clothes make the man
part 2
It took me 4 days to discover the Santa within. I found an approach that allowed me to feel really good about what I was doing. I gave the children something more precious than the latest toys. I gave them unconditional love. I gave the parents something much more important than a reiteration of what toys their kids had been conned into asking for, I gave them a heathier happier child. What kid wouldn't be thrilled to hear that one of the most famous and important people in the world loved them? The kids were awed, the parents were touched, the photograpers were inspired. Everyone loved this new Santa. Everyone except Mrs. O'Donnell. After all,the department store was there to sell love not give it away. Santa was supposed to get the parents into the proper spending mood, not be an end in Himself. So Mrs. O'Donnell stood by and nervously watched while Santa told each child how special he or she was. She couldn't tell Santa not to say that he loved the children. That would have been too blatantly hypocritical. But she wasn't going to let this Santa out of her sight either, he was acting too strange.
This went on until the early afternoon of the fifth day. About 2 o'clock there was a big commotion at the other end of the store. We heard a scream. People started to panic. The children and the parents all dived for something solid to get under. Soon a report came from the other side of the room. "Someone has a gun. He's taken a hostage. Everyone get down NOW." Santa was sitting in his chair like a king but suddenly all of his subjects disappeared. This upset him no end.
While everyone one scrambled for cover , Santa just sat there with a smile on his face looking here and there. He saw a deserted store.The mood was very tense. He looked for Mrs. O'Donnell. She was nowhere in sight. The only people He could see were a few salespeople. He caught one of their eyes.
"Santa, a man has a gun the other side of the store. The police are on their way." she screamed in a whisper. When Santa didn't move she became infuriated.
"Santa, can you hear me?"
I really can't say what it was that got into me that afternoon. Maybe if the clerk had known my real name and called me by it instead of calling me Santa, or maybe if I wasn't such a suggestable person, or maybe if I hadn't been dressed in this suit for 5 days running, I would have acted differently.
Santa didn't get down. He sat there like a Buddha, taking up the entire east end of the store. The criminal was taking up the west side. This was starting to look like a classic struggle between good and evil. Everyone knows that good will ultimately triumph. With the clerks shouting warnings, Santa slowly pushed himself out of the chair and stood straight up.
"That man is being naughty" were the first words he said.
The clerks looked at each other in horror.
"SANTA GET DOWN"
But Santa started slowly and delibrately walking towards the west end of the store.
"He won't shoot Santa", Santa said confidently.
At that moment I can honestly say that I felt invinsible. I thought that if the robber saw me approaching he would burst into tears and ask Santa for forgiviness. I was completely convinced in the inherent goodness of people. With Santa's arrival it would be clear to the young man that he was choosing the wrong path. Unfortunately He never got to test out his theory.
. I must make a confession. While I enjoy writing stories about my experiences, I don't consider myself a writer in the real sense of the word ( you may heartily agree wth me). Its not that I lack a feeling for words or imagination, although I could certainly use a lot more of both of these talents. What I lack most is the feeling for what is believable. I could make up some exciting conclusion to this story. Maybe Santa confronts the robber and talks him out of a life of crime; maybe Santa gets shot and dies but says something before he goes that changes people's lives; maybe the robber bumps into Santa on his way out and drops the gun. Santa hands the robber his gun and then the robber breaks down. The possibilities are almost endless. I suggest to you Gentle Reader to pause here and make up your own ending. ______________________ _________________________________________________________ The problem for me with all of these is that I have no sense of what the reader will believe. That's why I stick to telling what actually happened. That way I don't have to worry about believability. Now back to the story.
With Santa slowly walking with exaggerated steps across the long open room, suddenly the police rushed past Him towards the west end of the store. Quickly came reports that the robber had fled out the west door, leaving the hostage behind. People slowly were getting up from their crouched positions. As they did there was a certain silence that was maintained. Santa stood in the middle of the store like a lighthouse, sending out beams of hope. One by one the salespeople started to come around Him. There was a look of awe in their eyes. None of them knew my real name.
"Santa, you were great. "
"Man that dude saw you coming and took off ,Santa."
Whether this was true or not I really can't say. I never saw the man. Maybe he saw me . I can't say. I never got a chance to look in his eyes. But I did get a chance to look into the clerks' eyes. They were looking a lot like Mathew's eyes had looked a few days before.
"Wow maybe this is the real Santa right here ",one clerk said , but nobody laughed.
Just then Mrs O'donnell came up. It had taken her a while to get out from under the counter.
"Frank, I heard what happened. What in the hell got into you?
I walked back to the chair and sat down before answering, "Santa"
She followed me to the chair and stood in front of me. Slowly a tear fell from her brimming eyes. She didn't bother brushing it away. Then she did something that I had never seen her do before.
She smiled.
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