'The Big Red Store' A Poem about the Commercialization of Christmas

'The Big Red Store' is a poem that I wrote in the year 2000 to share at my Christmas seminars. It is indeed about a 'Big Red Store' which those who live in New Zealand and some cities in Australia will be familiar with - the place 'Where Everyone gets a Bargain'. Most bigger towns and cities around the world have a 'Big Red Store' or maybe your big store is blue.

It is the type of store you do not want to visit the week before Christmas and especially not on Christmas Eve - the queues there are the longest and even if you carefully select the shortest queue, clutching your tin of Danish butter biscuits for Grandma and two giant rolls of 'economy wrap', I can guarantee you will wait just as long, for the guy in front of you will have a trolley piled high with the latest gadgets and toys for his two kids who they always spoil at Christmas because well 'It's Christmas!' and 'This is what the kids requested in their letter to Santa - can't let them down'. It would ruin Santa's image!



It is at these stores where you will observe the worst of the Christmas madness and I must explain the reference to the 'Teletubbies' which appears in my poem. It was at a branch of the big red store in New Zealand where two mothers were caught on camera fighting, tug of war style, over the last 'Teletubbie' toy left on the shelves! - Such had been the media and retail hype over a TV programme for young children which featured creatures with TV sets in their bellies and antennas on their heads who could only babble but toddlers became 'addicted' to the show and parents believed that their child would suffer serious deprivation if he or she did not own one of the toys!

I have left in the references to the toys of the time - to remind you that the latest 'must have' trendy toy will always be replaced by another more expensive gadget that will now appeal to mum and dad as well as the kids - you just need to buy some extra consoles for each family member!

Perhaps, like me, you despise the commercialization of Christmas and some choose to turn their backs completely on any celebration of what is only seen as a ' Silly Season of Spending'. So they choose to have a 'low key Christmas' and just have a barbecue (I'm referring to the Southern Hemisphere here!) but they have barbecues most weekends over summer, so there is nothing really special or significant about their celebration of Christmas.

My seminars were a reaction in a way, to both of these trends I observed when I came to live 'Down Under'. Christmas had always been the most wonderful time of the year when I lived in England. There were always traditional trees in the town square, the aroma of roasted chestnuts on the streets, Christmas carolers and at my house - decorations inside the home (not an OTT outdoor light display that blew the fuses and rocketed the power bill skywards) special foods on the table, Christmas crackers, 'satsumas in stockings' and my favourite treat because it was only given to me at Christmas - a 'Terry's Chocolate Orange'! Whenever I 'tap and unwrap' a chocolate orange, it always reminds me of my childhood Christmases at home! My dad knew this was my favourite gift - in many ways I looked forward to this more than anything else - in my eyes it was better than the 'big present'!



Down under, Christmas was different, much more casual and laid back, it was hot and although the turkey was still on the table with salads instead of potatoes for Christmas dinner and presents were distributed by an uncle in a Santa hat, that was basically it. I found some people never bothered with a tree or if they did it was a 'tinsel stick' showing where to pile up the new toys for the kids which was their only family tradition - along with a tin of Danish butter biscuits for grandma which they had stood in a queue for an hour to purchase when all the ingredients needed to make biscuits where actually in their pantry!

I wanted to tell people there was a better way, that they could celebrate Christmas in style without going into debt or joining the madness at the mall, 'creating' a Christmas for their family to enjoy, introducing simple traditions which would be remembered by the children in years to come and even passed on to future generations. Discovering the joys of creativity and blessing others in very personal and practical ways. And to encourage Christian families to give honour to Christ, making Him the focus of their Christmas rather than a fat guy in a red and white suit.

So without further ado, here it is my poem to challenge your thinking and attitudes towards Christmas. I hope you enjoy it!

THE BIG RED STORE

Christmas is coming, Retail 's doing okay
For I joined the horde of shoppers
In the big, red store today
As I grabbed a trolley and sped off down the aisle
The blow up Christmas reindeer couldn't make me smile
'DON'T WORRY BE HAPPY'
I had a sinful wish
'I'd really like to punch that singing rubber fish!'

'Dad I want a Pokemon, like all the kids at school'
Having lots of plastic cards
Makes him look so cool
'Mum I want a Barbie house, it simply isn't fair'
'Santa didn't bring that much to our house last year'

Oh, the sights and sounds of Christmas
You'll experience at the store
But it's all artificial, nothings real any more

The Christmas tree is PVC, it's made in Singapore
There's even a matching plastic wreath
To hang on your front door



Nowhere was a manger scene on prominent display
To remind us of the meaning of this very special day
There were lots of jolly santas stacked high on every row
The loudspeaker bellowed
'ONLY 10 DAYS TO GO!'

The enticement to spend and spend some more
'Don't have money?'
'That's what credit is for!'
People in debt and suffering stress
Was it really Christmas that caused their distress?

Christmas traditions are now used as a ploy
To get you to buy the latest toy


St Nicholas was a saint with a heart for the poor
People don't talk about him any more
He's now known as 'Santa'
He's been hijacked to sell
On the books at Apple
And loved by Mattel
Down at Harvey Norman he can really draw a crowd
He's good at selling Christmas spirit
Does Liquor King proud

A plastic man- made Christmas
Commercial through and through
But have you ever thought what Christmas means to you?

To me, it means a Saviour sent from God above
Into a dying, desperate world to show them of His Love
Hope, Joy and Peace can be ours to receive
All He asks is that we truly believe

And I believe in Jesus, the Son of God Most High
I think of how He's blessed me
As Christmas time draws nigh
Each Christmas, my gratitude to God I express...
By using my gifts and talents to bless

Opening my home, I fulfill my desire
To reach out to others and hopefully inspire!
So celebrate Christmas and show that you care
About this special time of the year

Take your children to choose a tree
Bake festive goodies for afternoon tea
Decorate your home - now here's my advice
Lose the tinsel, it isn't that nice!
The best decorations I'm sure you'll agree
Are those made by nature - what's more, they're free!


So if you home is looking stark
Collect some pine cones from your local park
And if you're feeling really bold
You could even spray them gold!

Resist the urge to buy gifts to impress
Instead look for ways in which you can bless
You family and friends, the people you meet
The elderly neighbours who live on your street

You could give them something - perhaps made by you
Something you baked, crafted or grew

Would you open your home on Christmas day?
Invite someone on their own to stay
To be part of your family and share your meal
These kind of gestures make Christmas real

In spreading goodwill, we can all play a part
For the actions of people reveal their true heart

But in the big, red store, the queue's to the door
Where they fought over Teletubbies, it was shown on TV
On the six o'clock news for the nation to see

But we can choose a better way and redeem Christmas Day
By rejecting the hype and pressure to spend
What kind of message could we send?
For the stores don't own Christmas
It's ours to enjoy!
And to remember the birth of a baby boy
Named JESUS and He's still the REASON why we celebrate the SEASON!


Penned in December 2000
by Ann at eightacresofeden and christmasateden



Please - if you want to share this poem with others or read it aloud at a Christmas function, feel free to do so, all I ask is that you direct them to my blog for the source and acknowledge me as the author - thank you!