I raised my daughter here in Amarillo, as a single mom, since the time she was two years old. I loved it all! Well most of it.

Maybe not the times of struggling with not having enough money to raise her.

There were some tough times but the one thing I taught her was there were people way worse off than we were. I tried to teach her that some kids have to do without Christmas and that made her sad.

So for very many years we had a tradition. We would go to Westgate Mall on the day that Santa arrived. We would march with him as he made his grand entrance. It was such a magical time.

After that we would make our way to the Salvation Army Angel Tree. Every year we would pick out a little girl the exact same age as my daughter. We would then proceed to shop for this lucky little girl.

We would buy her clothes that she asked for. I always let Faith pick out the best outfit for her. We would also pick out toys for her as well. One year the only thing the little girl asked for was a bike.

So we went to Toys R Us and picked out the best one we could find. Faith felt so proud wheeling in that bike. She knew it would make this girl so happy. She also picked her out some other little special items too.

This was an easy time of year to teach how it was better to give than to receive. Even though Faith knew she might receive one less present that year. She was OK with it because she knew this may be the only present this little girl got.

I would say if you could do this same thing with your child, it is fun to watch. It is fun to watch as they pick out an angel. It is fun to watch as they shop for the child who might not have a Christmas otherwise. It is a blessing to teach your child the act of giving.

 

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