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Have
You Had A Wonderful
Life?
by Karr, LaRose
It's a Christmas
tradition in our home
to watch the movie
classic, "It's a
Wonderful Life." Are
you like George
Bailey? Have you had a
wonderful life? What
would the world be
like if you had never
existed?
My daughter said it
would be neat to see
what the world would
be like if she had not
been born. But if I
had never existed, she
would not be here to
speculate about what
the world would have
been like without her.
As I look at our tree,
I reflectively look
back and think of
times past. My
childhood Christmases
weren't always the
best after my parent's
divorced. During the
parent's marriages
however, Christmases
were good and I
remember one Christmas
Eve, we wanted to open
our presents. My
parents hid our
presents behind a
dresser in the spare
room. They made my
brother Roger and I go
to bed. We could hear
furniture moving.
After awhile they got
us up and said Santa
had come. Sure enough
the presents were
under the tree!
I remember getting a
nurses kit complete
with candy medicine,
plastic stethoscope
and some very nice
dresses that year. My
mom had put the
dresses in the layaway
at the local Sterling
five and dime store.
For non-Arkansans,
that was the chain
name prior to being
called Wal-Mart. My
Dad wanted me to be a
nurse and I'm sure
that's why I got the
nurses kit.
One Christmas we
traveled to Portage
DeSue, Missouri. I'm
quite sure that name
is spelled
incorrectly... but
anyway, we went to
stay with my aunt and
uncle for the
holidays. They lived
in a trailer. My
cousins and I got
dolls and I also
received a camera. I
still have pictures
taken from that trip.
My brother and cousin
were quite rowdy and I
remember my aunt all
bent over and my
brother aiming his
rubber dart gun at her
backside with my
cousin on bended knees
in the background -
silently pleading and
begging him not to
fire. Of course he
didn't!
Another Christmas they
came to visit us and
we slept three in a
bed that year. The
next morning more
relatives came and we
went home with Aunt
Geneva and Uncle
Cliff. A silent
mystical snow fell as
we drove to their
home, a rare sight in
central Arkansas for a
good size snow to
come. I remember being
in awe as a
nine-year-old about
the weather.
My stepmother Marea
taught me how to make
Christmas special. She
never bought expensive
gifts but everyone got
a lot of presents.
She'd buy all year
long and keep the
presents in boxes in
her bedroom.
What a sight to see
all those gifts under
the tree. and so much
fun. Her tradition is
one I've maintained
through my adult life.
I still love the sight
of lots of presents
under a tree and it
doesn't matter how
much money you spend!
Small gifts are
significant when given
with love. What if she
had not been in my
life to teach me that
important lesson?
I heard a man say that
our maturity comes
from the sum total of
our experiences. I
left home early in
life because of some
bad experiences and
moved around to a few
towns. But what if
like George Bailey we
could live our entire
lives in one little
town surrounded by
people who were the
best friends we ever
wanted?
What if we could go
through our lives
making a difference in
others lives? Would we
always yearn for
different places? I
think we would because
mankind cannot be
content or even know
what is good. What if
we could change the
course of history by
our prayers and our
existence?
We can...just as
Clarence the angel
wrote in the book he
gave to George...
"Remember no man is a
failure who has
friends."
When you go across the
street to offer
companionship to a
neighbor, you make a
difference. When you
smile at a clerk in a
store and discuss
their holiday family
traditions, you bring
a smile to their
faces. Perhaps you
give a small gift to a
teacher, or a ride to
someone who is out of
gas. Have you ever
lent a few dollars or
more to someone who is
in a financial bind?
Given a gift with no
thought of getting
anything in return?
Helped some children
whose parents were
irresponsible? Given a
student a ride to
school? Have you
opened your home to a
relative who can't
afford to rent a house
or apartment? And in
return have you know
the loyalty of those
you have blessed?
The oddest request I
ever had was to clip
someone's toenails. An
elderly lady in Denver
with no family nearby
called one day. Would
I clip her toenails?
She said to have it
done by a professional
was considered
surgery. Whether this
was true or not I do
not know but I did go
over to this lady's
house. I did not know
her very well but when
I arrived she had
soaked her feet and I
clipped her toenails.
You see, she had been
burned badly as a
young person and could
not bend over to reach
her feet. She used a
stick with a claw on
it to pull on her
stockings and socks. I
was acquainted with
her for about a year
and a half. At times
she was very
interesting to talk
with and told me many
stories of her youth.
At other times, she
was mean and nasty and
I did not wonder that
she was alone.
My life will never be
like George Bailey's.
We each have our own
unique story to tell.
This Christmas has
been a blessed one for
my family. I don't
live in Bedford Falls
or a place quite like
it, but I am glad for
the sum total of my
experiences and I do
believe that "no man
is a failure has
friends"
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