Sunshine Among The Pines
By Courtland Milloy
From The Washington Post - Wednesday, December 11 1996; Metro Section, Page B01
CAPTION: Jim Douglas and Ali Anderson are two tree sellers whose holiday outlook is optimistic.
Vacant lots take on a wonderful new look this time of year, especially the one at Connecticut Avenue and Manor Road in Chevy Chase. That's where the National Capital Optimists Club has set up rows and rows of Christmas trees for sale. The air smells of pi
ne. A fire barrel warms the hands of customers, and there's even a tree-lot dog for children to pet.
Jim Douglas [1975], 39, works the lot, answering questions about the various kinds of trees for sale. He has noble firs, Scotch pines, Douglas firs and many more. Douglas gives each tree sold a fresh cut and helps load it into the vehicle. If you
like, he'll even arrange to have the tree delivered to your home.
From the looks of it, operating a Christmas tree lot can be pretty hard work. But Douglas doesn't seem to mind.
"I've been doing this for 21 years, and I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I wasn't doing this at Christmas," he said.
Douglas has been an Optimists Club member since he was 18. He is now a science teacher and athletic director at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda. You'd expect him to be tired after a day's work. But he says a positive attitude helps keeps him energize
d.
"When people tell me they are too busy or too tired to get involved in community service, I challenge them to get busier than me," Douglas said. "It's a very good feeling to know that you have done something important for your community. Even after workin
g all day and half the night, I go home so charged up I can't go to sleep."
Ali Anderson, the newly elected president of the National Capital Optimists Club, arrived at the lot after completing her day job at the Pentagon.
She, too, helped cut and load trees.
"The physical work relieves the stresses of the day," she said.
But what Anderson enjoys most, she added, is watching families, especially the children, as they search for the perfect tree.
"People are on their best behavior when they are getting into the Christmas spirit," Anderson said. "Disagreements over what kind of tree to get are worked out with compromise and concession. A lot of times, parents simply defer to the children -- and eve
rybody leaves happy."
As the weather gets colder, the children come bundled up tight -- some with their arms sticking out like characters from the Charlie Brown Christmas special.
"I just love the kids," Anderson said. "They are so hopeful, full of faith and good cheer. Their optimism is truly contagious."
Anderson, who has been an Optimist for almost five years, is the first woman to hold the position of president since the chapter was founded in 1937. She said a friend told her about the club, and when she saw the famous Optimist Creed, she knew this was
the organization for her.
The creed is a promise that members make: to be so strong that nothing can disturb peace of mind; to talk of health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet; to make all your friends feel that there is something in them; to look at the sunny sid
e of everything and make your optimism come true; to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
And there is more, including: to wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile; to give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others; to be too large for worry, too noble
for anger, too strong for fear and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
Quite a creed, indeed.
"I had a rough day at work, my mother is ill and I must figure out the best time to visit her in California," Anderson said between waiting on customers. "But the upside is that I have a job, and I'm thankful for it. At least making the trip to see my mot
her is not out of the question, as it might be if I was unemployed."
Anderson said the National Capital Optimists Club hopes to raise about $20,000 from Christmas tree sales this year. That money, along with other funds raised by the club, will be donated to organizations such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washing
ton, the Pearl S. Buck Foundation, Heroes Inc., Children's Hospital, the Children's Inn at the National Institutes of Health, and the Hospital for Sick Children.
The Optimists also support the Viking Mat Club, a youth wrestling group, and the Octagon Club, a youth civic organization, both sponsored by Douglas at Walt Whitman High. Members are making stocking stuffers and wooden toys for children who live in shelte
rs for the homeless. They also make sandwiches and prepare other food for area soup kitchens.
Faith Rodell, president of Penn Evergreen, a Christmas tree wholesaler, had stopped by the tree lot to see how sales were going. She noted that some people had complained to her about the destruction of so many trees.
"I tell them that we grow Christmas trees and replenish them, like corn, and they don't complain when they eat corn," said Rodell, sounding mildly upset.
Although her tone was not exactly in keeping with the Optimist Creed, Douglas and Anderson kept their smiles. They just gave Rodell one of their brochures, which included an invitation to become an Optimist and a note that said, "We wish you and yours a v
ery Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year."
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