~everything to do with love~

I saw a woman today as I was out Christmas shopping who made me think of my mother.  She looked to be about the same age as Mom was when she died.  As a matter of fact come to think about it, she even dressed like her as well.  Her hair was gray, she wore glasses, and carried a big pocketbook just like my mom.  

I watched her for a moment from a good distance back and by the looks of her cart, I could tell she was Christmas shopping too.  She happened to be looking at t-shirts for young kids, and one by one she looked at them and their price tag.  The woman seemed to be having a hard time of making up her mind, as she noted the price on several of them.  She pulled out a crumpled up shopping list from her pocket and crossed something off. Finally she picked one out and put it into her cart and walked away.  

She put me in mind of my mom in so very many ways.  I remembered her going Christmas shopping each year and how she would sort through things as she tried to get the best price she could.  It wasn't that she wanted to be cheap, rather she didn't want her money to run out before she got the things that she wanted.  Mom had no charge card, no debit card, and for sure never looked for the greatest deals online.  She was an elderly woman who was trying very hard to get by on the meager amount she had to live on each month from her social security check.

And she did.

My mom was always good at figuring a way to make sure that each of her children and grandchildren had a present to open on Christmas Day.  No one was ever left out, from the smallest grandchild to the oldest son or daughter.  She was just like that and to this day I have to admire her for it.  I certainly never forgot it.

The gifts that Mom would buy would vary from year to year, but more often than not, they would be gifts that had some degree of practicality to them.  It might be a handy flashlight or a good shirt for each guy.  Girls would sometimes get a pretty glass dish or her embroidery work. The grandkids were always happy with whatever she had picked out for them just because it was from "grandma".  

When I got back home from shopping today, I looked for something in my china cabinet and there among the rows of pretty cut glass, I found what I was searching for.  It was the very last Christmas gift that my mom ever gave me.  She told me that it was from the "free gift" box and I knew just what she was talking about.  Mom loved ordering from a certain company that always sent 3 or 4 gifts extra as an added bonus.  She really received some pretty nice things and she always shared them with others as gifts throughout the year.  

It is a small dish, probably meant for candy, in the shape of a strawberry.  As I held it my hands this afternoon, I couldn't help but to remember the kind and caring woman who had gifted it to me, now so very long ago.

My china closet is filled with many different pieces of glassware.  A few pieces are worth something but the majority is of value only to me.  Of all the pieces that I have collected over the years, this one means the most.  It probably cost all of 25 cents to make it in some factory, but the heart of the one who gave it to me was made of gold.  

I shall always treasure it.

In this season of giving gifts, I pray that I keep in mind the sacrifices that my mom made in order to give something to each of us in our big family.  Mom did without, I know she did, in order that our hands could each hold a gift in them on Christmas morning.

She left quite a legacy behind her and it had absolutely nothing to do with presents.
It had everything to do with love.