Christmas

I did not realize how close it was to Christmas time until I read this chapter. Salinger did not really discuss the cold or any hints to give you the season besides Holden going back home for Winter Break. I kind of forgot about that, though.

Christmas time is always a favorite for me. Holden seems to like it, too. I thought his story about his adventure in the shoe store with Phoebe last Christmas was very funny. I figured the salesman would be upset, I mean I know I would be with lacing up twenty pairs of boots, but he was not. He apparently knew that they were just horsing around. It was Christmas time and he just let them have fun. The Christmas spirit seems to be going around this year as well for Holden. He could not eat his donuts for whatever reason, so the waiter took them back and did not charge Holden for them. I thought that was very sweet. In this day and age, if you do not eat your dinner that you ordered, you are still charged for it and the food just goes to waste. They can not even give it to someone else because of health regulations anymore.

“So it wasn’t too bad walking on Fifth Avenue. It was fairly Christmasy. All those scraggly Santa Clauses were standing on corners ringing their bells, and the Salvation Army girls, the ones that didn’t wear any makeup or lipstick or anything, were ringing bells too. I sort of kept looking around for those two nuns I met, but I knew I wouldn’t see them…” (Salinger 197). I kind of hoped that Holden would see the nuns again. He seemed to enjoy their presence and think about them a lot. I hope he finds them so they can help him turn his life around. The Christmas spirit on Fifth Avenue seems to help his spirits too, though. I know it always lifts mine! All the lights and happy people cheer everyone up. The happy children do not hurt the happiness, either. Hopefully Holden finds some hope in it all.

Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown, 2001. Print.