SooToday received this letter from a reader reflecting on past Christmas traditions and the Sears Christmas Wish Book.
On the eventful day that the Sears Christmas Wish Book would arrive by the trusted Canada Post, usually in the late fall season, pandemonium would break out in the O’Connor family household.
The Holy Grail of Christmas shopping was in high demand by all children in the household. Browsing through its pages loaded with pictures of wondrous toys, dolls, outdoor equipment, gadgets, fashion items, household things and just about anything else you could imagine was a true rite of Christmas prepping.
As the days of browsing turned into weeks and even months, the Wish Book’s pages became worn with dog ears, many were torn and tattered, but it was still the best read in the house.
In our family in the 1970s, each child was given a $25 cap to make your wishes come true on Christmas morning. Yup, 25 bucks, and boy oh boy, that could go a long way back then. I remember usually being able to pick out about three items which would make up my wish list for Christmas.
One year, it was a motorized airplane on a string that you manoeuvred around your body as you spun, keeping the plane airborne. Often there was a snow glider in there, because we were all tobogganing masters. Living in Gros Cap, as youngsters, we sledded on the treacherous and famous Baldy Mountain Bluffs, and we were always in need of a new ride.
The Sears catalogue and specifically the Christmas Wish Book is rooted in history. Ninety-seven years of history coming out of the U.S. and 65 years in Canada. Sadly, the retail chain closed its doors for the last time in 2018, as creditor protections ran out, and the massive retail space left behind ended a legacy that was quite simply just part of our life “back in the day.”
Scholars have studied the impact catalogues such as the Sears Christmas Wish Book had on society and our social norms. Remember, in those days, there was no internet, no cellphones, no electronic gadgets bringing us promotion messages. We relied on the printed word and art on paper.
And so today, on this snowy winter morning, you may not have the old Sears Christmas Wish Book to curl up with and read with your morning coffee, so I guess your iPad tuned to Pinterest will just have to do.
Kinda being a little nostalgic today, thinking of childhood days of wonder and dreaming and wishing with the old worn-out Sears Christmas Wish Book on my lap.
Happy wishing at Christmastime.
Frank O’Connor
Algoma, Ont.