A few days ago a writing friend of mine blogged about Christmas Ornaments. She said she had been asked to bring a Christmas ornament to a party and tell the story of the ornament and why it was special to her. It wasn’t really her thing, she said, and she hadn’t planned to take part. Then a box arrived from her sister and inside were “five small prettily wrapped gifts—Christmas ornaments for [her] first tree and [her] first Christmas in [her] first house.” Each ornament was special.
It was a loving and meaningful gesture by her sister and as she displayed and explained the significance of each ornament, I was reminded of the ones our family has accumulated through the years … only I’m not sure what they should be called.
Ornament: a thing used to make something look more attractive but usually having no practical purpose, especially a small object such as a figurine.
Decoration: the process or art of decorating or adorning something.
Memento: an object kept as a reminder or souvenir of a person or event.
Just below the centre of this photo, nestled among the branches, you can see a small cross. (It looks like it’s comprised of little jingle bells strung together, but they don’t make noise.) My parents passed it along to me the year my first child was born, with the reminder that it had been on every tree since my first Christmas. Not shown is another small circle of well worn nylon bristles with the picture of an angel affixed to the centre. It has also been on every tree since my birth.
Yes, it makes the tree more attractive but has no practical purpose. Yes, it helps adorn the tree. Yes, it’s a special reminder of my first Christmas. It’s all of the above and yet it’s more.
My parents weren’t religious. I’m sure they believed there was a god, but he played no role in their lives. We didn’t attend church or say grace before meals. Christmas wasn’t thought of as a holy holiday but was traditionally a celebration of friends and family…of visiting, eating, singing and gift giving. So I’m not sure what prompted them to choose a cross and an angel to commemorate the first Christmas of their only child.
I’m glad they did, because it’s meaningful to me, but I wish I’d asked them about their motivation when I had the opportunity. At this point in my life it waits out the months between Decembers well padded in a box labelled as ‘Heritage Ornaments’, along with others given to me from my grandmother’s tree–a fragile red teapot, two glass birds and a tiny brass bell. I treasure them for the memories they evoke of the people we celebrated with…my parents and grandparents.
The cross wasn’t a thing of beauty. At some point many years ago the wire holding the ‘bells’ together broke and the silvering began peeling off. My hubby thoughtfully restrung them and bought a can of silver paint so we could refurbish it. I sprinkled silver glitter on the wet paint, and, while it was an amateur job, to this day it continues to shimmer in the lights on my eightieth Christmas tree.
This same tree marks our sixtieth year together. That makes it pretty special, too, although earlier this year while on a cruise to Alaska I bought a little ornament to specifically mark that occasion. Looking at it, I’m inclined to say that these are neither ornaments nor decorations, but are mementos. What do you say?
Do you have holiday decorations / ornaments / mementos that are especially meaningful to you? I’d love to hear about them.
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MUSINGS 
Lovely memories, Carol. I have some from a long time ago as well. I also love the ones made by the kids when they were young. When downsizing, I gave some of them to the kids to put on their tree. Nice to keep the memories alive. Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas, Darlene. Yes, we have decorations made by our children and others given by friends. All are precious, although as the collection grows, it’s hard finding a place for every one on the tree, especially the years when we end up with a small tree.
As you know, I’m a nostalgic, sentimental sap, so yes, I have many things on my tree that are very precious to me! ❤
And now we each have a new memento of this Christmas to add to our trees. 😉
Our decorations have been stored away since 2012. It’s just not feasible to bring them to Bucerias. But one day we’ll stay home for Christmas, and I’ll unbox loads of treasures. I’m actually looking forward to that. Not the freezing-outside part. Happy New Year, Carol.
Happy New Year, Joylene. While Christmas wasn’t unusually cold here, it probably was in a lot of Canadian places, and the current January cold spell in BC has been brutal. This wouldn’t be the winter you’d have wanted to spend in Canada.