I’m surprised we got it done in one afternoon. It seemed like every piece brought back a memory or a story to tell.
We decorated the Christmas tree after Thanksgiving. Like many other families, we did it a little earlier this year. Covid has created a need for many of us to brighten up the house earlier than normal.
Over the years we’ve collected a few
When Priscilla and I first got married (I think we were still shopping at Zayre), we bought some of those gold and silver balls (and tinsel) for the tree but now there seem to be SO many other decorations that either the children made or we received as gifts. We had four children that all went to Little Peoples College and then the Wood elementary school where they made decorations to bring home. Some of those have cute pictures of the kids and it’s fun to remember when they were that small. And when Doug and I had hair. Sorry Doug. I was hoping you had your mother’s genes for hair.
Priscilla used to be the Drum Major at Dartmouth High School so someone (much more creative than me) made a drum major in a Dartmouth uniform out of a clothespin.
We also bought a dated ball for each baby. 1989 (Sarah), 1993 (Doug), 1996 (Kat), and 1998 (Matt.) My wife quizzed me and I’m proud to say I got ‘em all right. The family still picks on me because when I go to the pharmacy for the kids and the Pharmacist asks, “Date of birth?” I would go, “Uhhhhh.” There’s a 1986 ball for our first year in the house.
My mother’s ceramics
It seems like my mother was doing ceramics for as long as I can remember. She probably started in the ‘70s and she did some beautiful work. I can remember helping her load up boxes and boxes of ceramics for Church Fairs around the area. I would help her set up and then come back to pack anything that didn’t sell. There usually wasn’t much left.
We used to describe our house as “Christmas a la Vi Braley.” She gave us many beautiful things over the years. Some of my favorites are the Dickens scene that is actually a music box. There’s a Tiny Tim and Bob Cratchit (She kinda knew that was my favorite story). There’s a snowman and snow woman, a 3-foot Santa, Christmas carollers and Priscilla’s favorite: the Nativity scene with each individual piece so detailed and beautiful.
Every piece tells a story
So, yeah, every time I took a piece out the box from the attic the other day there was a story. There was a memory. They were good memories too. I know this time of year can be difficult for some people and it can be a reminder of what you may not have anymore. I know it can be sad but it can also be a reminder of the good times you had. Nobody can take those happy memories from you. Those days may be in the past but maybe take a minute, just a minute, and remember the joy you had at the time. Now it’s time to get busy making new memories.
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