Going Christmas Shopping

The air was nippy and there was a dusting of fresh snow on the ground as my Mother, twin brother, and I boarded a bus for downtown.  We were going Christmas shopping - Mom was doing the shopping and we were tagging along just for the fun of looking at all the Christmas displays.  We got off the bus on the corner of 101st Street and 102 Avenue just across the street from Eaton's and Woodward's, two of three of the then largest department stores in downtown Edmonton.  Eaton's was famous for its Santa Clause Parade (which we attended every year) and Woodward's for its windows filled with animated Christmas displays of nostalgic Winter scenes and the preparations going on in Santa's workshop getting him ready for his big night.

Mother looked at the clock as we entered Woodward's.  "It's just two o'clock. You meet me downstairs on the Food Floor at the Ice Cream Bar at four and we'll have a strawberry sundae before going home (Woodward's made the best soft ice cream strawberry sundaes this side of heaven).  I want to be on the bus before they get too crowded going home.  Have fun and don't get into trouble."

We were off in a flash and headed back outside to gaze at the wonderful displays in the windows.  Then we went up to Toyland on the fourth floor.  Santa had a castle there where you could visit and sit on his knee and have your picture taken.  Being twelve, we were no longer interested in sitting on Santa's knee and headed straight for the electric train display.  The trains were magnificent and expensive.  We would never think of asking for something like that but there was no reason why we shouldn't enjoy looking at them.

Eventually, we took the elevator back down to the main floor.  The camera department was right next to the elevators.  Much to our delight, there we saw our Mother standing at the counter and a salesperson showing her a portable movie screen.  We had asked for a screen to use with our View Master projector so that we could project our View Master reels so that more than one person could see them at the same time.  Money exchanged hands and Mother must have arranged to have the screen delivered to the house because she didn't have it with her when we met up later.

This chance occurrence gave us an outrageous idea!  We would follow our Mother around and see what else she was buying us for Christmas - we were not disappointed.  Mother always claimed to have eyes in the back of her head so that she could see all that was going on around her.  That was one day when those eyes failed her and it was two happy boys who met their Mother for a strawberry sundae before getting on the bus and heading home.


                                                                               

  

 My old-fashioned Christmas Tree laden with gifts