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FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | DECEMBER 2020 11 Chrtm Memories Santa Had Daddy's Eyes By Jane Czajkowski 'Twas the evening before Christmas… And all through the cozy upstairs flat Mom was stirring about with this and that. Little Brother and I were playing With ABC blocks on the kitchen floor. When, suddenly, who was that at the door? It was Santa! He's never been here before! Awed, and perplexed, all I could do was stammer: "Yes, I was good." "Thank you, Santa Sir." Little brother's smiles saved the day: Toys and sweets governed his DNA. After Santa left I whispered in Mom's ear: SANTA CLAUS HAD DADDY'S EYES! Santa Claus had my Daddy's blue eyes: Not the blue of Uncle Tony or Cousin Ray. But the blue of storm-scrubbed skies. Daddy's blue was a forget-me-not hue Of Lake Michigan on a sunny day. A blue that would wrap its arms around you And hold you tight; That would twinkle the tears out Of your pout; And would whisper that all is right And tuck you in for the night. Such were my Daddy's eyes! The next year we found presents under the tree. Santa didn't come. It was all right by me. The gifts were not from some old man keeping score. But from someone who loved me more. Kamela's Black Friday - 1998 My four-year old daughter, Kamela, was working on an art project and I was prepping for Thanksgiving. We were chatting about being thankful and the television was on in the background. A commercial came on, inviting people to shop the special deals only available Black Friday. Kamela seemed particularly interested in this commercial. She paused for a moment and asked, "Mommy, only Black people get to shop Friday?" I laughed and answered, "No Sweetums." Black Friday is the name stores give the Friday after Thanksgiving. Many people consider it the beginning of the holiday shopping season and stores offer items at reduced prices. The stores usually have limited quantities of the special deals; therefore, you have to arrive early to take advantage of the reduced prices. Once in the store, you might see other items to buy. As a Black mother to a Black child, we had many talks about being Black in America and what that meant. I was excited that this talk was about good old economics and what that meant. Submitted by Jane Gentry Prayers Work It was shortly after our blended family had moved into a bigger home which was needed as I went from being a single, working mother of one daughter to being a married woman with three new sons. My new job and working on my master's degree had left little time for me to enhance my cooking skills for a larger crew, especially for those appetites. Dinner usually consisted of a frozen, store-bought something or a quick fast food pick up. So it was rather funny one evening when I came home just prior to the holiday when our oldest son looked at the turkey and several bags of groceries I was busily unloading and let out a big sigh and an even bigger "Hallelujah!" Looked me squarely in the eyes and said, "Prayers do work, you know. I prayed to God we would have real food for Christmas!" Still makes us laugh every Christmas when one of us brings it up! Submitted by KC