“Not my business.”

It’s a refrain we have all heard or said at some point.

Scrooge’s business partner, Jacob Marley, pays a visit to Scrooge from beyond the grave. His haunting is the catalyst that sends Scrooge on a journey of change. As Dickens tells us in the beginning of his story, it must be understood that Marley was dead. Nothing wonderous can come if that fact is not understood. Marley somehow gets one last chance to help Scrooge change before he is doomed to wander the earth in misery, just as Marley does.

During that visit, Scrooge reminds Marley that he was a good man of business.

“Business!” cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

This line has been the guiding text for me as I have explored this story.

How many times have you walked by an awkward situation in public and veered away instead of speaking up? How often have you witnessed unfair treatment of another human being or passed by a beggar on the street?

Mercy. Charity. Forbearance. These things should be our business. A Christmas Carol has remained in our homes and our culture because it reminds us of what we ought to be focusing on. We shouldn’t be distracted by shopping, by gifts, by extravagance, by wealth. We should focus on taking care of each other. Just a simple message and yet so hard to remember.

As I return to this story, I am reminded of how my father reads it every year and encourages his children to do the same. It is meaningful because I think my father, a businessman, sees true value in the message. Always an employer who took care of his employees, I think he sees a relevant and poignant reminder in Scrooge. We must cherish those we work with and those we pass by everyday on the street. I hope our little ghost story will remind audiences to make mankind our business during the busy holiday season.

About Kristin Clippard

Kristin Clippard is proud to be the Associate Artistic Director/Producer in Residence for Orlando Shakes. Selected directing credits include The Luckiest People by Meridith Friedman, God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza, Loyalty and Betrayal (a community collaboration based on Julius Caesar), and Champagne Gods by Emily Dendinger. Favorite classic play projects include Twelfth Night, The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Imaginary Invalid, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Taming of the Shrew, Measure for Measure, Pericles, Dr. Faustus and She Stoops to Conquer. Kristin has taught, produced, administered, acted, assisted or directed with many theatre companies, non-profit organizations, universities, and schools across the country. She enjoys developing new works with writers and is a playwright herself. Kristin holds a BFA in Acting from Wright State University and an MFA in Directing from the University of Iowa. www.kristinclippard.com