the
Lesson
by Dena Hensler
Our journey began on a Friday night some forty- see captured in a snow globe.
A Rexall drug store was our first stop, and as
two years ago. After having completed our evening chores,
two teenaged-girls dressed in warm coats, jeans, sweaters, soon as we opened the door we were greeted with what
mittens (knitted by Mom), and boots, set out on foot could be described as a pleasantly medicinal smell. While
for downtown Presque Isle. We were anxious to begin they specialized primarily in pharmacy-related products,
our Christmas shopping and were excited that the stores they offered a line of unique gift items including a wide
remained open until 9 P.M. on Fridays. The money Martha assortment of popular perfume/powder combinations all
and I had earned from picking potatoes and babysitting was attractively gift boxed but too expensive for our meager
virtually scorching a hole in our pockets. Our lists had been purses. Fancy pen sets were also out of our budget range.
thoughtfully crafted, then redone several times making Just as we were ready to move on to another store, my eye
certain in our minds that we had chosen the right gift for caught site of a small vial containing round, white bath
beads that resembled perfect pearls. Carefully, I turned
each member of our family.
Snow was just beginning to fall on this windless the bottle upside down where the white, sticky price tag
revealed that it was affordable! A feeling of
night. The large flakes resembling white
confetti as they landed on our eyelashes “Life-size replicas success accompanied me as we left the drug
store, package in hand.
and our face, tickling our noses and
of Santa Claus, Continuing down Main Street,
tasting cool when we stuck out our
Martha and I seemed to be carried on a
tongue to capture some of the semi-frozen
reindeer,
magic as we took in the
precipitation. Making our way down Dyer
snowmen and wave o