Just Santa

'Tis the season...for returning.  Today I had to drive 30 miles to return something I purchased that I shouldn't have. On the Friday before Christmas I had better things to do. I was in a hurry, and I was certainly not in the holiday spirit.

I was moving quickly on a country road when I spotted the red and white suit. Someone dressed up as Santa Claus was standing by the side of the pavement, waving at passing traffic. There was lots of traffic: behind me, before me, and coming in the opposite direction. Some drivers were waving back at him, or honking their horns, encouraging this masquerade. This was downright annoying! I had someplace to go, and some guy in a Santa suit was slowing traffic. No doubt "Santa" was employed to draw attention to some monster sale that was going on. There appeared to be a sign behind him, but I was focused on not getting into a fender bender, and I did not care what goods he was peddling. But the not-so-Scrooge in me had to admit that - at least out of the corner of my impatient eye - he looked like the real deal. Great beard, perfect belly, rosy cheeks, great hat. Whoever had hired him was probably getting their money's worth, selling lots of trees, toys, or whatever. But right then I needed to get where I wanted to go, and I was pleased when I was well past the Santa slowdown.

Once the unwanted object was successfully returned, I turned around and headed back to work. The traffic had abated, and I was feeling less humbuggy as I neared the Santa zone this time. Indeed, mine was the only car in sight and was therefore the object of his attention. I was curious to see what his deal was, so I slowed enough to read the sign behind him and see what kind of store he was standing in front of. It was not a store, but a rather regular looking single-family house, with no sale in sight. The sign read what his lips were mouthing: MERRY CHRISTMAS!  In those few fleeting seconds as I passed, his eyes sparkled and looked directly into mine. His smile was so genuine that I found myself smiling back. He really was the perfect Santa. He waved cheerfully as I left the Santa zone.

I thought about him a lot as I retraced the 30 miles. Was he just an ordinary person, standing in front of his home, selflessly trying to spread a little holiday cheer? Were there really still people like that in this world? Then I recalled a story on the evening news last week about a man who had made a holiday habit of walking around handing out $100 bills to total strangers. The car radio was offering its own tale of philanthropy, this one about someone paying off shoppers' department store layaway balances. By the time I got back to work, I was feeling the true spirit of the holiday season.

Santa has helpers everywhere, and they do good things for so many people. After all, Santa can't be everywhere at once. But I have a strong feeling that after all these years, I finally got to see Santa Claus. For today at least, he was standing by the side of a rural Connecticut highway, spreading joy to the world.

I hope you get to see Santa, too.