Come on, sing along with me… “It’s the most wonderful time of the year!” Or not.

There are many reasons why this holiday season may not be the most wonderful you want it to be, including the state of our economy, the harried shoppers, cards to address and mail, gifts to wrap, menus to prepare… and the days closing in on us by the second!

Well, enter Steven at Kmart in Cranston, RI.

Yesterday morning, Audrey asked if I would like to take a ride with her to a local Kmart, where a super-sale was going on with Star Wars characters. (Santa likes these sales!) She was taking Benjamin along (who is now a will-not-sit-in-cart-for-any-reason kind of 20-month old total boy). It was a spectacular sunny winter morning… and who could resist going out in a warm sweater and hat with a darling little grandson in hand! Oh, and Pop-up was coming, too.

So off we headed to the Cranston Kmart. It is a very big Kmart in a very big plaza. There were lots of cars there already, but we found a parking space, bundled up our little Benja and Pop-up and I held his hands as he walked between us (or more like strongly suggested that we swing him at each step!). Once inside, Benja took off like a little rocket ship, cruising each aisle with the glee of Santa’s famous reindeer. I followed.

Audrey went about her work in the toy section of Kmart, with Pop-up as her elf helper. Every once-in-awhile, Benja would take a break from his cruising and say, “Mommy? Pop-up?”… and I would take him to the toy section to check in. Audrey and Pop-up happily found everything they wanted… except for 2 items. Audrey was looking for 3 Playskool/Tonka Wheel Pals cushy cruisin’ trucks and a Batman guitar.

This is where Steven comes in. Pop-up asked Steven if he could help them find these items. Now, I don’t know Steven… but I would guess he’s in his 20’s. He’s about average height. He has dark hair. And I know his name and how to spell it because of his name tag. There were lots of people asking Steven for help (I mean to say… it’s almost Christmas, we were in the toy section, and there was a big sale), but he never became frazzled or impatient. His 2000-watt smile and attitude lit up the entire store.

Steven knew exactly what we were talking about regarding the Playskool Wheel Pals. He brought us right to the smaller versions, but the larger ones were not there… and Audrey explained that she had one at home, but four boys. Steven smiled. He had 4 brothers and 2 sisters himself… so he knew all about boys and trucks and even-Steven, so to speak! He looked up on shelves, behind shelves, checked other sections, looked in the back… but to no avail. There simply weren’t any more bigger Wheel Pals.

Of course, all this time Benja was running up and down the aisles. And Steven laughed at his cuteness.

Then the Batman guitar. Audrey told Steven that she didn’t know if her little Alexander had seen this somewhere, or just thinks there is such a thing. Steven said he had never heard of that particular item, but he looked anyway. He checked toys, musical instruments, inventory… and was disappointed that this item wasn’t at Kmart either… or perhaps that it doesn’t even exist.

We shook hands with Steven and thanked him for his kindness and his thoroughness. Steven at Kmart completely brought a warm heart to a cold December morning. And even though Audrey could not check these items off Santa’s list… it just didn’t matter as much. We had, I think, just met the true spirit of Christmas in Steven at Kmart.

So… if you hear me singing, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” from where you are, it’s because it is!

Thanks, Steven… from my holiday heart.