Thursday, December 2, 2010

Reaching Out For Love




This is very enlightening and nice to watch
Enjoy





I remember lots of things about Christmas except what I got under the tree. I know I saw boxes but I don't remember what was in any of them.

When I got older I would save my allowance. Then I would go to the store and find a beautiful sweater or expensive shoes I thought would be a treat for my parents and I'd buy them. So while I got presents which so it seems, didn't mean much to me, cause I can't remember what they were, my parents were very happy with what they got.

We also did not put names from whom the presents were cause they were all from Santa.

Well, one day my Dad remarked that one present was from his daughter. And my Mom answered how do you know? And he answered, cause you would never spend so much.

My Mom blushed and my Dad laughed but I felt so good that they loved their presents.
From that day forward every time I gave a present, even though it had no name on it from who it was, my parents knew which ones were from me.lol

My parents were very frugal. They never spent just to buy. They spent on what was needed anyway, so it was all about socks and underwear and PJ's and slippers. I never had many toys and those I did have disappeared and I would see my cousins with them and wonder where mine went?

They never even asked if it was ok to give away my stuff and today when I think about it, it sometimes infuriates me. In those days however, I never missed them or new they were missing. I always had a very clean room.

I had a hand turning sewing machine made out of metal someone gave me and I know I treasured it. One day I saw my neighbors 4 year old daughter playing in the dirt with it outside.
I asked my Mom where my sewing machine was and she said you don't need it.
I gave it to the neighbor.
I was hurt but said nothing.

Then one day I walked into an antique store and there was my sewing machine but today it cost 250 dollars to buy back.

Well I didn't buy it back because I had a real one by now which I found and bought because I made an excuse that if I had to sew one day without electricity, I'd have one to sew with, and it looked the same. I could have just as easily used the little toy one, since it was just like the real one, but for kids.

See how, what parents do, affect children?
One never knows why one does things in life,
until life looks back at you.
:)

6 comments:

George said...

I agree with you that I remember more of the gifts I gave than those I received. My parents never gave away my toys behind my back, but we were encouraged to re-gift to those who had less than we did.

A Lady's Life said...

George - your parents were more considerate. lol
I had a few things I would have wanted to keep. And now that I think about it, it would have been nice if they asked.
But this is the way they were. lol

Once you understand that parents are not perfect and just regular people, like everyone else is, nothing they do bothers you anymore.
When we were growing up adults were Gods who knew everything.
It was a shock to find out they didn't. lol
One day...... you grew up.

Gattina said...

This video is adorable ! I sent it immediately to family and friends, lol !
Christmas presents, I remember once, I got a doll and it was a boy ! and I cried and made a fuss because I didn't want a boy as doll. My parents finally had dressed "him" with a dress and glued a girl's wig on him, of course at that time dolls were neutral without sex, so it was possible, lol !

rhymeswithplague said...

During her teenage years, Mrs. Rhymeswithplague had on her bed a large doll she had loved as a child. She planned to give it to her own daughter one day. After high school she went into nurse's training, and when she came home one weekend, the doll was gone. She asked her mother where the doll was and her mother said she had given it to the little girl next door.

Mrs. Rhymeswithplague was crushed but never let her mother know.

A Lady's Life said...

Gattina - Glad you enjoyed. :)

A Lady's Life said...

Rhymeswithplague -
Oh I can imagine how she must have felt.
I do not know how parents make such decisions for you. I guess for them it was about survival and not things.

I guess because we grew up war free, we feel we are owed, but nothing lasts forever.It's nice to be able to hold onto some things for posterity though. Just to think they belonged to people you knew and loved and were passed on.