CHRISTMAS MEMORIES

 

We put up the tree this week. Not the Christmas tree (although that also happened). We put up the Advent Calendar which we have used every year since my mother created it for our children when they were young. You can see the picture above.

The star that goes at the top is frayed, missing a point or two. But we haven’t even considered replacing it, it reminds us of a mother’s love.

The date markers are so filled with pin pricks that they look more like pin cushions than calendar markers. But every pin prick is a memory of children whose excitement grew as the tree gained decorations.

When we had four children (before the arrival of Christopher), they quickly figured out that the person who put on the first ornament December 1, would also be the one placing the star on the top of the tree December 25. We had to write down the year and who started the month, on the box which stored the ornaments. That way we had a record of who had the privilege of placing the star each year.

All five of the kids have their own families and their own traditions. But when grandkids visit, one of the first things they want to do is place an ornament on the Advent Tree. Mother has been gone for ten years now. But the memories keep piling up, day by day, ornament by ornament, leading us on to the STAR.