I’ve been that person. The one who scans through the tags hanging on the giving tree in the lobby, looking for the most inexpensive items. There must be something under five dollars. Someone would be asking for something practical, like socks or gloves, right? I could knock that out at the dollar store on my way home and my wallet wouldn’t even feel it. We could wrap it in pretty paper and bring it back the next week. Good deed, done.

I’ve also been that person who, upon looking through those tags could not believe they were asking for expensive items. Jordan shoes? Uh, don’t think so! Gaming system? Really? I just spent a ton of money on Christmas for my own family. There was no way I had enough to get a stranger a gift like that.

Yes, I’ve thought that.

Until the year came when I was the single mom without two dimes to rub together. That happened to be the same year I overheard my children talking in the next room. I was making out a grocery list and they were making out their Christmas wish lists. “You can ask Santa for all of the most expensive stuff because he doesn’t have to buy it. It’s free. He just has his elves make it.”

Then I heard the items they were listing. A saddle for the horse. An iPad. An Xbox, and a bunch of games to go with it. Nike shoes.

That year, they may as well be asking for the moon. Santa quickly became my nemesis. I had literally just scratched bread off my grocery list to make room for milk. That week, I couldn’t afford both. I told the kids that big wishes were fine, but they should probably throw in a couple of smaller, more practical things as well so they didn’t seem greedy. Truth was, I wasn’t even sure if Santa would be bringing that. For good measure, I added, “Baby Jesus only got three gifts when he was born, so we shouldn’t ask for more than Jesus.”

It occurred to me in that moment that we could very easily be the family with Christmas wishes on tags, on a tree, in a lobby. If we had been, the kids wouldn’t want gifts someone picked up from the dollar store. That’s what they got every other day of the year. This was Christmas! This was when they dreamed big! The dollhouse. The clothes everyone at school was wearing. The latest gaming device, so they could play with their classmates. Yes, this was the one time of year they wished big. When they dared to dream of a pair of shoes that didn’t come on a string, or from their sister’s closet. (Exact words from my 5 year old.)

It brought me back to when I was little, waiting for the Sears Wish Book to be delivered. My sisters and I couldn’t wait! We would go through and give careful consideration to each and every item, then circle the ones we really wanted most and put our name by it. You can bet there were no gloves or socks or anything practical on that list. No way! The wish book is where we would go to find bicycles, record players, and roller skates. Dolls, and Lincoln Logs, and pretty pink sweaters. I can still feel the excitement and see the wonder in our eyes as we sat in our pajamas and thumbed through each page of the catalog. We weren’t just looking at toys. We were piling up Christmas wishes.

Now, I reflect back to both of those times when I see a giving tree. Yes, I still take time to carefully look over the items, but this time I try to picture the child behind the tag. I can see them writing down their wishes, with that same wonder in their eyes that I had as a child. Then I try to choose items that are not practical at all. The ones that would not be in a dollar store. In fact, I look for items I would buy for one of my own kids, and then I let them help me pick it out. It’s okay if my wallet feels it a little bit. My children know the sacrifice we are making, and we pray for the family who will receive it. And the best part for me is that I know there will be a Mama, just like I was, so very thankful that Santa seems to find a way to make every year magical.

Have a blessed week, friends! And the next time you are lingering around the giving tree in the lobby, consider the look on that child’s face when they open their Christmas wish.