Christmas club

Christmas Club

fiction
edward w pritchard

We had a bank in town back then called the Dime Bank. Later I would open up my first savings account there, get my first car loan there, and after it merged with another Bank transfer all my accounts. But that was much later. When I was seven years old I learned about the bigger world from My Mother's Christmas savings account from the Dime bank in our hometown.

Each week Mom who didn't work outside the house would deposit five dollars into her Christmas savings account. It was a lot of discretionary money for our family for money was tight and it was tempting to use the money for other things and Dad often wanted to. Car repairs, occurring unexpectedly or a late mortgage payments, threatened Mom's Christmas account. But, no matter how skillfully or logically Dad protested and argued Mom won out. We never touched the Christmas savings before December 15th.

Each year one of us kids would take the bus with her downtown and she would with draw the 250 plus interest, making a total of about $263 that Mom took in cash, in small bills. Then off we went for a twelve hour day of shopping and hauling huge bags around; for Mom bought for everyone.

We didn't have much money when I was young but my family was generous and we always were shown a good Christmas.