Margaret Rome Baltimore 410-530-2400 and Carol Williams are co-hosting a December challenge for ActiveRain members called ActiveRain Holiday Gift Challenge. Our goal is to share gift ideas for the person who has all the material items they could possible need OR we could talk about the most unique gift we have ever received. I already entered my ideas for the first part of the challenge, but I thought of something specific for the second part. So I am sharing one of the most treasured gifts I received. This is not for points, just for sharing.
My mother dealt with cancer the last four years of her life with an upbeat attitude, joking about leaving the house and forgetting to bring her hair or consistently finding the best about the situation. When one treatment option wasn't working, she'd try another, and then another, with an "OK, what's next?" attitude. Unfortunately after four years, she was told there was nothing left to try. At that point she stopped all medication and within a week or two was on oxygen and had hospice at home. So what did she do with the time she had left? The same as always.
It was late November 2011 at this point. So what she decided to do was to make a point of purchasing us all our last Christmas present. She wanted us to remember her which of course was silly because of course we would with or without a last gift. But this was important to her. So for me, she purchased me a coffee cup with a lid which is pictured in the feature photo. Now, what she must have forgotten is that I am a klutz with coffee cups, breaking them quite frequently. So I have been using this cup for the last 13 years as a place to hold my makeup. So every morning I can look at the cup she lovingly selected for me, remember her, and also make sure not to break it.
But my mom didn't stop there. She also wrote each of her family members a handwritten letter. Her letter to me talked about me being her first born, and about what I was like during my childhood, and how she felt about my life as an adult. It was a beautiful letter that makes me smile and cry every time I read it. I treasure it.
So why am I sharing this? Because when I think back on all the gifts I've ever received, it's not jewelry or clothing or anything else that pops into my mind first. It's a $5 cup and a piece of paper with writing on it. And both of those were my mom giving me love. So, when giving gifts to those you care about, give them love. Perhaps grab a piece of paper and a pen and let them know how much you care about them. Or buy them a small carefully selected item that they might use on a daily basis, smiling because it's from you. Because really, it truly is the thought that counts. Let that thought be love.
Merry Christmas.
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