Christmas work can provide joy

By Lee Cataluna
Advertiser Columnist

The lady at Zippy's brought it to mind.

There she was, in her smock and black polyester pants, her plastic name tag dangling from the pin that wasn't closed all the way, wearing a pair of red sparkly antlers on her head and a churlish look on her face.

"Numba two-forty-tree. Numba two-forty-tree. Large chili-cracka'. Numba two-forty-foa."

The antlers were askew on her head, adding to the overall effect. I was kinda' scared to pick up my large chili-cracka'. She looked like one real grouchy reindeer. But then, she surprised me. She broke into a big smile as she handed over the large chili-cracka' and said, "Marry Chris-mess!" like she really meant it.

She made me think about what it's like to have to work on Christmas. Your family is at home pretending that they're going to wait till you pau work, but when you get there they've picked off the best parts of the turkey and all that's left in the cooler is the papaya-liliko'i six-pack. Plus, the kids have already opened, played with and broken all their presents.

But the Zippy's lady also made me think of what it can be like to work on Christmas. A few years back, I had to work my shift and cover for two other people on Christmas. And though I had worked on many holidays before, this time, I was pretty unhappy about it.

A co-worker had her family coming to visit from the Mainland. Her mother, father and brother flew to Hawai'i to be with her on Christmas. And then she was called in to work.

Instead of getting mad, her family got busy. Her mom was so determined to have Christmas dinner with her daughter, she brought Christmas dinner to her workplace.

The family decorated the marble-gray and white conference room with candles and ornaments. They brought a tablecloth and wreath and made the cold, strictly-business room look homey. There was turkey and ham and every manner of holiday food. It was a feast.

All of us who had to work that night were invited to the dinner. All of us who had to work that night were invited into the family.

It changed the way we saw Christmas, and instead of feeling like we were cursed to have to go to work that day, we felt honored. We felt blessed.

For the lady with the red antlers askew at Zippy's; the cashier at Crabtree and Evelyn who has heard the Ala Moana Christmas musical at least 20 times this season and who can still manage to say, "It's festive" through gritted teeth; the people who will go to work today not knowing how long they'll have their jobs; for all the people who have to work on Christmas Day, I hope you find the kind of surrogate family warmth that my co-worker's mom brought to us that day.

Yes, Christmas is a family holiday, but what a blessing to make a family out of those who just happen to be around that day.

Reach Lee Cataluna at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com