Silver Bells

One of the many wonderful things about the holiday season is the special memories of celebrations in years past. I was watching the news this morning, as I exercised, and they were asking each other about memorable childhood Christmas gifts...what they got, etc. Now, I don't really remember a gift, per se, though there are many wonderful things that I got that do come to mind, if I think about them...most involving quite a bit of work on the part of the giver, i.e. sewing doll clothes, building, putting together, etc. This thought of Christmas time also came to me, the day before, as I had my beloved Christmas music blaring while I did my cleaning. I heard the song "Silver Bells" playing, and it brought back a flood of memories. Silver Bells was my grandmother, we called her "Tutu", favorite song. I remember learning the words in school chorus, and feeling so very proud that I knew it all, by heart, even though I doubt that I ever sang the song to her. She was a very proper person, and a very busy person, but I remember going to her house at Christmas. She had the biggest real tree, with huge multi-colored Christmas lights on it...the big ones. I remember sitting at the table in the evening and playing a game..."Huusker Du" I think it was called. It was so fun, and not something we did any other time of year. "Silver Bells" brought back such fond memories, such wonderful times. I think that, at this time of year, it's not always what we GET that we remember, but what we GIVE. I remember working so hard to memorize those words to that song. I remember the first Christmas I had a job and being able to go crazy getting my mom gifts, like a blender and a robe. I remember Dee and my first Christmas together and how I just couldn't sleep because I had gotten him a new backpack with the money I had earned. I remember working hard on playground equipment, Barbie houses, Thundertanks, toy kitchens, bicycles, stickers on zillions of plastic toys...the giving, the doing, that is what we remember. So, as I rode my bike around the neighborhood with my sweetheart to look at lights, I saw a big bush, lit with big outdoor Christmas lights, the same that Tutu used to have on her tree. Silver Bells...it's Christmas time in the city...Thank you Tutu, for the wonderful times every Christmas...and for Mom and Dad staying up late to see if Santa needed anything. The particulars may not always fresh, but the feelings are forever! Thank you!