Conclusion

Shortly before Christmas last year, I
stood in the kids’ section of a
Washington, D.C., Walmart, shopping
list in hand, gazing at toys and talking
myself out of each of them. That year, I
had volunteered to “adopt” a needy
child, which meant that I was given a list
by the local branch of the Salvation
Army and told to return with a bag of
unwrapped Christmas gifts.
It sounds pretty simple, but I