The Man of Toys
There are guardian angels. I feel that in my soul, and don’t doubt it one bit. There are also humans on earth that are angels in disguise. How do I know this to be true? I met one, several times. And to this day, I never knew his name.
Back in 1994, my family and I moved to Hartsville- exactly 1000 miles away from my home in Bath, Maine. I had a two year old girl, and boys 3 and almost 6. I was 27 years old, and with the exception of college in Massachusetts and a few visits to NC, SC and FL, I had never lived away from my Mom very long. It was warm that Christmas and New Year's, which was a novelty. Then, it rained the entire month of February (or so it seemed) and I missed my Mom so much my heart broke each time I heard her voice on the telephone.
One day, I bundled the kids into raincoats and L.L. Bean rubber boots and drove off to the Hartsville Post Office to buy more stamps and mail some photos to Mom. My mind was concerned on unbuckling car seats and chasing little boys, so I never saw him approach until I heard, “Well, good morning, children!”
There before us stood a smiling older gentleman in a black coat and hat, smiling for all the world like a man standing in the sunshine rather than gray rain. His eyes twinkled, and looked at each child lovingly.
“I have something for you, if your mother allows…” and off he went towards his car.
I looked at my eldest son, as his green eyes sparkled in anticipation- ”Who’s that, Mum?”
I shrugged my shoulders, not sure what to make of this little man.
Over he walked with three stuffed animals under his coat, and handed a pink bear to my little girl on my hip, a blue bear to my three year old, and a green monkey to my kindergarten son.
They smiled and hugged their stuffed animals close, and all said an excited “Thank you!”
Needless to say, they talked about him the whole way home. "Was that Santa's Helper?" and "Who was he??" My heavy heart, missing my home and my family was lifted, and I felt the warmth of a good deed.
This occurred several other times, once in the parking lot of Winn Dixie, once while eating at the buffet restaurant, and once more at the Post Office. My children never asked his name, and neither did I. I asked about him once or twice, and if I was told his name, I did not commit it to memory… I preferred to imagine him as an angel, a leprechaun, a magical man that seemed to appear out of thin air with a gift for my children just when my spirit was lowest.
Twelve years later, I still get a sensation of a heart overflowing and tears in my eyes when I think of that man, and how his magical stuffed animals made my children feel so special, and made their mother believe in earth angels. I want to thank him somehow, honor his memory, and do good deeds in his name. Better than any greeting to a transplanted Yankee, that man made me feel welcome, and gave me the courage to bloom where I was planted.
Do you remember him? Did your child ever get one of the stuffed animals he kept in his car? I thought of him years later when I saw the film, “Pay it Forward”. Wouldn’t it be great to be remembered by people in such a wonderful way, for such kind deeds?
Bless you, Man of Toys, wherever you may be…. you’ll always live in my heart, among my fondest memories of Hartsville.
I remember your man of toys
His name was George Nick!
same person?
This is an excerpt of an e-mail I received about this fellow:
"I believe you will find that to be George Nichols.
I think, many years ago, he either owned or managed what was called the
Manhattan Restaurant in Hartsville. It was before I moved here. I believe he is John Nichols' uncle. John is head of First Citizens' Bank in Hartsville. There was a postcard photo of the Manhattan Restaurant on here several months ago. Don't take this for fact but I think that is who it is and I believe you will hear from some others who remember that habit of his with the children and the stuffed animals."
here's the Manhattan postcard
No comments:
Post a Comment