A Special Ornament

 Last year at this time I was boxing up and moving contents of stuff from one house to the other.  

And trying to decorate for Christmas.  

There were a couple of very special Christmas items I could not find.  I knew they were around, I just could not find them.  

This post is about one of them.  

When I was going through stuff in the basement, under the stairway storage, I found this letter.   A friend was helping me move and I got so excited she couldn't imagine what I found.  I couldn't believe I still had it!  

 When I was a kid....about this age...I used to love to "rearrange" the Christmas bulbs on the tree. We did not always have an aluminum tree.  My parents loved this tree, we hated it.  We wanted a real one.  Now I have an aluminum tree, AND a real one.  Love them both.  Anyway, there was this one bulb I always loved.  L.O.V.E.D.  And you can see we did not have all red bulbs on our tree like most people did.  We had all of these old glass ornaments.  I collect those now, and use them on my tree. 

But this one ornament was special.  I always thought it was so beautiful.  One year I found an old ornament like it at a flea market, bought it, and my sister and I traded it every other year because she loved it too. I'm eleven years older, so I had 11 years on her for loving that ornament!

 Then one day while I was at work (over ten years ago) I was taking a break in the cafeteria with a friend.  I had went to a Pampered Chef party with my Mom earlier that  month, and Mom stopped by to drop off my order.  She dropped it off and left.  

My friend and I were talking, and she said, "what did you order?"  as she looked in the bag.  

I told her what I ordered.  Then she said..."you also ordered a shaker thing." 

"I didn't order a shaker thing."

"Well there is one in the bag."

"hmmm, I must have gotten someone else's order." 

So I looked in the shaker box, and in it was THIS note,

With this ornament.

The note said (paraphrased)... I know you will take good care of it so you can pass it down to someone who will care for it as much as you do.  It was my Mother's, now I give it to you.  Use it with love, as I did.

 I've never put it on the tree.  I tape this stand down and I tape the opening closed at the top of the hanger.  This ornament was my grandparent's, my parent's, and now mine.  I don't want anything to happen to it.  Remember last year my tree fell over.

Back to The note I found in the basement.  It was an e-mail from my Mom.  I had e-mailed her after I opened the ornament.  I couldn't call her I was too choked up.  I thanked her for the ornament and told her she made me cry.  She said, "She didn't want me to cry."  She said she would put it on the tree and remember all of the wonderful times she had as a child.  She said she had good parents and a very good childhood.

Me too.

Of all the gifts you can give your children, your grandchildren, your nieces and nephews, any child that is in your life......it's a good childhood.

Merry Christmas everyone
Cindy Bee


PS.  I keep those letters in a tin with that ornament now.  It will all go to my sister someday.