Have you ever heard the song “Christmas Shoes” by the band NewSong (I believe that is the correct artist)?
Christmas Shoes is a song about a man who meets a little boy in a store on Christmas Eve. The little boy wants to buy his mom a pair of shoes but he doesn’t have enough money. The reason why he wants to buy her shoes is because she is dying and he wants her to have something to wear when she goes to heaven.
I can tell you with all honesty that the song is NOT allowed to be played in my presence. I will not listen to the song. I cannot listen to that song. Just the music makes me cry, let alone hearing the words too.
First of all it’s depressing enough as it is. What makes it harder for me is that my own mother passed away a few days after Christmas almost 7 years ago this coming December 29th. Just hearing a song about Christmas an a child’s dying mother is enough to make me cry hysterically.
I’m not a perfect person. Far from it actually. I make plenty of mistakes both as a person and a mom. But there is one thing I know for sure and that is that my family always comes first. I would walk to the moon and back (if it was possible) for my family. There is no sacrifice too big or two small for them.
Over the years I gave up my job and finishing my college degree just so I was there for my family 24/7. Even if I need a haircut I won’t get one if I know someone in my family needs one. I usually end up trimming my bangs and pulling my hair in a ponytail until we have the money for me to get a haircut.
I’m a simple person. I don’t ask for much and I don’t need much. Up until October I only had two pair of shoes. Sneakers that I wore every day and a pair of faux Crocs to wear to the pool. Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall…I wore those same sneakers every day. Even though they had wholes in them and were all worn out I still wore them.
When the kids were getting ready to go back to school we were heading to Payless to buy them shoes. I was finally going to give in and get a pair of sneakers too. I usually get the ones that are $20 a pair or less. On our way to Payless the kids got sidetracked. We ended up in Models where both of my kids fell in love with a pair of sneakers. We budgeted for about $20 per person for new sneakers but the ones the kids wanted were $35 a pair. Being the person that I am I told my husband to get the sneakers for them and use the money that we would spend on shoes for me to make up the difference in the sneakers they really wanted. So what if I still had sneakers with holes in them. My kids were happy and excited (they both put them on the moment we left he store) and they had new sneakers for school. To me that is what mattered the most. I lived with my sneakers for over a year. I think I could handle a few month months. It’s not a big deal.
Fast forward to this past week. My husband informs me that he ordered something and it will be coming in his name. It was being sent home after a mix up at the post office caused a delivery to be returned to sender. My husband specifically asked me to check all labels before opening any packages. I get packages sent to me on a regular basis so I just automatically open everything. My husband also told me not to take note of the return address either. Ok, not a problem.
Yesterday a box arrived mixed up with some other packages that was addressed to my husband. I didn’t look at it any further. I just put it aside in the hallway near the coat closet.
My husband met me at the bus stop yesterday to take the kids home while I went to ship something out (Secret Santa gift). When I got back my husband and my kids were being very “hush-hush” about something. When I asked what was going on my husband asked me if I wanted my Christmas package now or at Christmas. I said that was a silly question, Christmas fine. My kids on the other hand kept saying NOW! NOW! So my husband went to get the box that was delivered and apologized for it not being wrapped.
Since my husband and kids were all standing around me I felt obligated to open the package. Guess what I found inside? A new pair of sneakers! They were from Payless too and identical to the ones I had. My husband wasn’t sure what to order as far as style/design so he figured it was OK to get the same sneakers since I must have liked them enough to purchase them in the past. He got my shoe size from my sneakers one evening when I was taking a shower.
I learned that it was my KID’s idea to get me the sneakers. I’m shocked! I got shoes for Christmas… my own “Christmas Shoes”.
Now the song has a whole new meaning. It still makes me cry and I refuse to listen to it, but at least this time I have a happier event to associate with the song.
For those of you who have never heard the song before you can hear the song and read the lyrics on this site that I found, http://peachpatch.com/shoes.html. A word of warning… it has to be THE MOST DEPRESSING SONG EVER! If you listen to it make sure to have tissue handy!