I just thought of this. When I was a kid, the way we did our Christmas Shopping was in the Sears, Roebuck or Montgomery Ward Catalogs. Something very few people even think about these days. Mainly because they do not exist any more. Oh, you can get a Penney's Catalog, but that just isn't the same. There is nothing you could think up that you couldn't find on one of the pages of those two Catalogs!
They were a must in every household, I think. They were about the size of our regular Telephone Directory. Of course they were printed on better paper, or come to think of it, were they? Not to worry. They were packed with just about anything a young girl, boy or anyone for that matter could imagine. In the outer parts of civilization the outdated ones were placed in the outhouse for use, well you know!? It wasn't for reading, that is for sure.
Farmers would scan the pages for farm tools, or other useful things needed. In fact, they even had live stock, way back when! If you wanted to raise baby chicks, you could find the things you needed, right there, in that catalog.
The girls would turn to the pages with material, or ready made dresses. Man what a way to shop. No worry about parking the car, who had a car? No walking endless isles to find just what you wanted, or pouring over the racks of clothes or counters of sundry things, no, you just opened the Catalog and there you were in Dreamers Heaven. Boys would, of course, show more interest in bikes, wagons or scooters. Way back when, they even use to "roll hoops". Life was more simple back then. It didn't take a lot to entertain folks.
Would the folks like to have a new sofa? Well they could look in the catalog and pick out just the thing. Dad might need a new hammer, or screw driver, there it was' Craftsman was way back then too. Wonderful, "one stop shopping" at its earliest and best! Who would have thought it?
Apparently Sears and Roebucks, Inc. Something for everyone and all you had to do was thumb through that book and dream and plan for what ever. Spend your money in theory, but never loose a dime.
When Christmas rolled around, the whole family had their turn at checking out just what they would like. Not that they ever got it, but it was the fun of looking and dreaming. Hours upon hours were spent either laying on the floor with your feet in the air or setting by the window or next to a lamp; leafing through the "Wish Book". It never was boring, it never disappointed the viewer. It was something that kept interest as long as their was time to quietly glance page, to page at all the things that were offered. Oh, and when an order was placed, what anticipation for the actual delivery of the items that had finally been purchased.
Sadly times change and one day Sears stopped printing and offering the wide array of things in even the smallest catalog. Now you can drive, find a parking spot and walk the isles in a big store to make your selections. The only thing is, those selections are not nearly as varied, or as interesting as once found in those catalogs.
Someone wrote a song that said: "Dream when your feeling blue." Well those opportunities are no longer available. Of course the vary society we live in today doesn't really lend itself to such things, but you know, something pretty wonderful has been lost. Even the poorest families had the opportunity to "dream" with pages in a book that had "everything" in it. There is no such place for us to turn to today to find such a "wonderland" of adventures. Maybe that is why the talent of "great imagination" has just about faded from view. Life is fast paced, movies are computerized and things have become modernized with technology that is beyond most of us older folks to the point we can barely keep up. Well, lets be honest we don't keep up, we just muddle around with these "new things". Phones that can do about anything, but are used only by us "Grannies" for making of all things "phone calls". Imagine that? Then there are the computers we have learned how to turn on, but can only type out messages and bring up our e-mail. There are a million other things they do, but with our antiquated thinking, we are more apt to enjoy a Catalog journey than struggle with a new program on the one eyed monster we all have but know very little about.
What has come and gone only brings to mind the past and the many things it offered that are no longer part of our life style. I don't know that returning those "good old days" would be great, but they are certainly entertaining to remember and glean from our memories the great things we did when there was nothing else around to occupy our time. Enjoy life. Things are easier, more complicated and unfortunately taken too much for granted. I wouldn't change the things I remember for a lot of things we have today, but you know, having had those experiences amazes me how far Society has come, and how very little it takes pleasure in what is around. I guess that is progress, but it seems like such a shame some of the past has not left more of an impact on the present. A hold over from the "wish" era I guess!
Written this 25th day of May 2010
by: Eileen C. Rosenberg
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