By Carol Lucas
I admit to being perplexed this week regarding what my topic for The Island News might be. Anyone who writes on a regular basis knows that the muse is not always readily available at the snap of your fingers. Sometimes you have to ponder and dig and ponder some more. Even then, that little devil may peek around the corner, smirk, and then disappear.
So I was almost ready to notify my editor that this was another dry week when I turned to that inimitable source, Facebook, and what to my wondering eyes should appear but a small glow in the dark. And the glow became a flame as I considered many of the ramifications of this topic.
This is an issue that resides in my backyard, on Lady’s Island. For several years, at the beginning of the holiday season, the roundabout on Sams Point Road has sported figures of the beloved cartoonist Charles Schulz, including the Charlie Brown evergreen, a short, crooked form with wimpy branches and a single ball.
When I started down the road of research, I found some very interesting ideas about all that Schulz portrayed through cartoons. Charlie Brown’s tree, for instance, holds a pretty deep significance. Said one source, “His tree came to symbolize something authentic and beautiful, a unique soul in the midst of candy-colored dross.” That you can purchase a replica of this tree on Amazon speaks volumes about society’s need these days for something “beautiful and authentic,” even if it costs $25.
Those of us who use that road came to look forward to seeing the figures mysteriously appear every year. Each time I rounded the circle, I had to smile. This year there were even additions to what originally appeared; sadly enough, there were deletions as well.
This morning, I learned that some Grinch decided to steal the figure of Snoopy and Woodstock. I’m sure this had to have been done under the cover of night, and the question is, “To what end?” How, exactly, do you plan to use your stolen property? Surely you won’t have the nerve to put it into your own yard … but then you had the gall to steal it, so why would I assume you wouldn’t flaunt your arrogance?
So few things these days are given to the community at large, just for the sake of providing enjoyment. Why must it be that when this graciously occurs, our renewed belief in mankind must be shattered?
Some will say this incident is inconsequential in light of what is happening throughout the world. And I will respond that, indeed, it is but a small, significant representation of the society we have become. To grab what we want and tell ourselves we deserve it. To scoff at something and try to demean it, even if it requires thievery to make that point. To take from others the joy of seeing something so purely innocent and memory-inducing because you lack a conscience.arol
It is Lucy that calls Charlie Brown a “blockhead.” All his persistence to try just one more time with that football might lead some to call the nickname applicable. But remember that when he is asked to define love, he replies, “It’s buying a present for someone with your own money.” Might I suggest that the perpetrator read this and read it again.
Perhaps next year the person who so graciously provided the Peanuts-inspired levity at the roundabout can render a figure of Pig Pen and let the Grinch steal it. That would somehow make sense.
Carol Lucas is a retired high school teacher and a Lady’s Island resident. She is the author of the recently published “A Breath Away: One Woman’s Journey Through Widowhood.”
