In 2018, the Orlando Sentinel put out the following call: “What is the best gift you’ve ever given? And what is the most memorable gift you’ve ever received? Tell us, and we may include your answer in the Christmas Day edition.” They selected my response. I thought it would be the perfect time to share it with my readers…
Snowflakes and Stars
They dangle in the thin winter sunlight streaming through the window. Their twirling facets send rainbows dancing over the walls. A tree full of alternating snowflakes and stars represents the love that has held us together through years of joy and happiness, heartache and sorrow, golden days and difficult times.
The best holiday gift I have ever received has been given over time. I opened a triangular-shaped box in 1993 to delight in my first Swarovski Annual Edition Ornament. And every year since then, my very own Santa has placed another blue box imprinted with a silver swan in my Christmas stocking. There are twenty-five hanging on the tree this year, and I look forward to adding 2018 on Christmas Day.
I can see myself holding it up to the light and reflecting on the year that has gone by. As I hang it on a branch beside 1993, I will take step back to admire my snowflakes and stars, each one unique, each one a treasure. My gaze will be caught by the sparkle of a particular year. Its tiny silver tag engraved with 2009 will take me back to a Christmas morning, a grandchild in my lap, his chubby fingers reaching for it, his unfocused eyes following the dancing light as I swing it back and forth. And I will smile before turning my attention to another ornament on a tree full of rainbows.
That is what I wrote in 2018. My very own Santa has continued to deliver each year. Now there are thirty-two ornaments on my tree, still the most memorable gifts I have ever received.
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