By Staff
My sister, one of the most organized people I know, used to have a habit of completing her Christmas shopping by sometime in August.
When we were younger, that was a great system for me - we shared the expenses for presents, and she did most of the work. My only job was wrapping.
Now that we're both married, my free ride on choosing gifts is long gone.
And while I'm not nearly as organized as she is, I do like to get things done ahead of time.
This week we all have a great opportunity to take advantage of early Christmas sales by shopping downtown on Thursday evening.
Being new to Brewton, I'm really looking forward to this downtown tradition. Merchants have promised special sales, entertainment and refreshments, and they will be open late so that we all have time to shop.
While I realize that the Christmas spirit is not all about the shopping and the gifts, I think this special event helps emphasize what is best about our community: Neighbors sharing special traditions with neighbors.
How many cities, even if they are small towns like ours, have a community Christmas event like this one? All we'd need is a
light dusting of sudden snow to make it the perfect Christmas picture.
I can't say enough about the importance of shopping at home and keeping our Christmas dollars in our community - but I also can't say enough about the importance of keeping our small-town holiday traditions alive, and sharing them with each other.
Kerry Whipple Bean is publisher of The Brewton Standard. She can be reached at 867-4876 or by e-mail at kerry.bean@brewtonstandard.com.