Gifting

So I remember really not enjoying working last Christmas, so I went into today expecting a really rough day. However, I was delightfully surprised. It was great to be back and I had a wonderful experience with a family.

A rather frantic mother walked up to me carrying a Hermie video (for those who are unfamiliar with all Family Christian Store Merchandise, this is a movie about a caterpillar which was written by Max Lucado, a famous Christian author). She asked me for a specific cross necklace that was in our flier, then decided against it and wanted me to open a case so she could get another one. While asking me for the keys, she also asked where a Hermie dinner flatware set was. So I walked her back to the kid section and reached to the top of the shelf and retrieved the flatware.

Then as we being to walk back toward the front of the store to get the cross she says to me,
"So, this is what is going to happen,"
(My thought at this point is.... "You will pay for the stuff and leave? I really pretty much know how this works.)
She continues by saying "I am going to buy the necklace (she is not making me hold the necklace really low and covered) and hide it in my pocket and I will leave the Hermie stuff here.
Me = "Ok" (this is a hesitant ok because I am thinking why on earth did I pull this stuff down if you are going to leave it here.)
Customer = "After I leave, my kids are going to come in here and buy me a Christmas present"
I'm thinking "Your kids are going to buy YOU a Hermie video and flatware set?"
Customer = "I need you to help them. They have the bag coupon. Can they use that?"
Me = "Yes. And the Hermie items?"
Customer = "They will buy those with their own money."
She proceeds to stuff the purchased cross into her pocket and leave the store.

I turn around my fellow employees and laugh about the situation. At this point I am very daunted by the task of picking out a present for this woman. I am freaked because the Hermie video is for kids ages 3-6 and I am thinking this is the age of kids who I will be helping pick out a present for mommy.
From the direction of the door I hear "That one. The tall one with the dark hair."
I laugh, turn around and wave and suddenly notice that it is about a 13 year old boy and a 10 or 11 year old girl. The customer/mom continues to baby the children until she is absolutely positive they know which cashier to go to. Then she leaves and the kids approach me.
The boys says (in his best "I'm really an adult" voice and manner) "I have a coupon."
Me = "Ok"
The boy would not walk away until I had taken the coupon from him.
They begin to walk around the store and keep looking back at me for help. I am thinking "these kids are old enough to pick out a gift for their mom and I do not want to insult them by babying them."
The boy again returns to me and asks for a Thomas Kinkade Perpetual Calendar. (Thomas Kinkade is a artist). He claims it was in "the" flier. I pull out the current flier and he tells me it was the one before that. Considering it was my first day back from school, I am clueless as to what and where stuff in the last flier would be.

So after some debating about what a perpetual calendar was, (the paper flipping kind, the wood block kind, or the hanging king). I found a Thomas Kinkade Perpetual Calendar. It was HUGE and extremely expensive! I pick it up expecting the boy to tell me no and I look to the boy who smiles at me. He brings it up to the register along with two Thomas Kinkade coffee cups and the various Hermie toys. I begin to ring this stuff up and again the boy is trying very obviously and very hard to be as adultish as possible. With the coupon, the total was huge. I was really afraid to tell them the total because I was sure these two kids couldn't have that much money of their own between the two of them. I say the total and the boy looks down at his wad of money and counts it out and my eyes widen. He has a lot more than I thought. He hands me several twenties so I have to give him about ten dollars back in change. I smile and shake my head and try to wrap this huge calendar the best I can with tiny bags (which was really pretty badly). The kids then left and I left the store ten minutes after my shift ended because I was enjoying the situation so much and didn't want to leave until they had.

Now that I have retold this story I am sure it is not nearly as funny and sweet to anyone else. But watching these two young kids acting like big time adults buying what I assume is their first big time gift for their mom, was just too cute. And the mom babying both these kids and working so hard to hide this necklace and get the Hermie stuff ready so she could have an excuse to be in the store. It was just such a great family Christmas moment and I was happy to be a part of it.

Working at FCS this Christmas might not be nearly a hard as it was last year.