Adam's Underwear

Published by Family ~ Sarah Hill                                                                                                         Holiday, 2004

           

Adam's Underwear

I'd like to introduce you to my friend.  I'll call him Adam.  I've never really met him.  The only connection I have to this 11-year-old kid is a yellow piece of paper.  And yes, a few pairs of underwear.

You know that slick, Christmas Toys-R-Us flyer you get every year in the mail?  At the Hill house, our kids anticipate its arrival like its some sacred document.  I came across that Toys-R-Us flyer the other day.  You could barely read the advertisement because it was covered from top to bottom in marker.  My kids had surrounded every single toy on every single page with a big fat red line.  Circled.  A message to mom that my children wanted EVERYTHING on all seven pages.  I laughed out loud.  At the time, it was funny.

Back to that underwear.

What kid doesn't want lots of new, shiny toys for Christmas?  Well for Adam, it's not about what he "wants" but what he "needs." Adam is one of the children my family adopted through the Voluntary Action Center's Christmas program.  His mom's a single parent with two other children and she needs help buying presents.  Most kids Adam's age want a go-cart, X-Box or Playstation 2.  But when I was reading the yellow sheet the VAC provided, I did a double-take at Adam's gift request.  Listed next to his age was something you won't find in any Toys-R-Us flyer.  This Christmas, this 11-year-old listed underwear.  He wants underwear for Christmas.

Suddenly, all those red circles on the toy store mailer weren't funny at all.  They represent everything that we and our children take for granted.  In our race to have everything, we forget those who don't have anything...even underwear.  Sometimes it seems like our fists are clenched so tightly around our paychecks that we cut off circulation to our heart.

Adam will get his underwear.  his mother will also get the deodorant, laundry detergent and toothpaste she requested for Christmas.  As you're strolling through the aisles this holiday, consider buying something for families like Adam's.  I think we'd all be surprised at the incredible mark we'd make this Christmas, if we gave our red marker a rest.

"We make a life by what we give." Sir Winston Churchill

The Columbia Rainbow House is holding an "Underwear" drive until December 22nd.  You can drop off donations of underwear and socks at "Caroline and Company" on South Providence Road.  Rainbow House Contact: 474-6600

Other sites which host clothing, toy or food drives during the holidays include: The Voluntary Action Center in Columbia 573-874-2273; The Samaritan Center in Jefferson City 573-634-7776 and the Salvation Army in Columbia and Jefferson City.

Sarah Hill lives in Columbia with her husband, son and daughter.  She anchors the 5 p.m. newscast for KOMU-TV and produces a weekly feature called "Sarah's Stories". She enjoys volunteer work, running and collecting African art.