With Black Friday and Cyber Monday now officially behind us, I decided to walk the mall to see what I might see and find who I may spy.

Before I begin, let us review the numbers. Black Friday weekend was a guarded success with overall sales of $57.4 billion, down 2.9% from last year. Cyber Monday was a sparkling success with spending up 18% to $1.74 billion, the top online sales day since statistics began to be kept in 2001. The experts are still saying overall spending will be up 2.9% to $602.1 billion for this Christmas season, a nice jump.

So, I thought I’d get a jump on the season and catch the sights out there at the mall.

I drove to park between the tall towers camouflaging the interior haven of holiday shopping glee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Red-stemmed ornamental rhubarb and smiling blue petunias waved me on to the closest entrance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disembarked and entering, bright red poinsettias and twinkling Christmas lights clamored to catch my eye.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tiny pine trees pointed their needles to direct my passage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A ginger-bread world waited to freeze my frosted attention.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Forcing myself onward, I passed beneath the gigantic orange sculpture that seemed to better fit the Holidays than the everydays of past months.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The leaping hare pointed me onward for the path to the North Pole.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sensing movement in the air, I hurried past a field of the laughing red jack-in-their-pulpits, their noses tuned to my search.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There he was! I rushed to draw closer, but the sleigh accelerated, gliding away and around the corner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I might yet have a chance! Sprinting to catch up, I passed the fixed gaze of a regular mall resident standing before his lighted tree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Focused on pursuit, I hardly noticed the giant winter golf balls resting in their desert lair.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Between the nodding holiday blooms, I moved my head right and left, hope yet driving me forward.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sensing a presence, I jumped out in front of a child’s construction of wonder and looked up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was him!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Off again, off again, he flew to the skylights. The red-suited old elf with the flowing marshmallow beard rushed overhead and past, behind the pecan-encrusted coursers kicking back their fleet hoofs in surprise. My smiling face followed every movement. It was a thing only a mall could bring.

Good Christmas to you and yours. May you keep that jolly red figure in sight. And, with your eyes to the sky, watch your step. The prickly cactus of Christmas make their home at my mall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Extracting a few small burrs was worth the trip for a happy observer like me to see a seasoned traveler like he, Jolly Old St. Nick and his reindeer nine — as I count the rhyme.

Now Dasher, Dancer, Prancer and Vixen. On Comet, Cupid, Donder and Blitzen. Dash away, dash away, dash away all. Oh, I almost forgot that one in front. Do you recall? The most famous reindeer of all? Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

It’s something to spot that red nose.

Dash away, Dash away,

Dash away all.

Grandpa Jim