Sunday, December 25, 2011

My Favorite Present

Some of you may have read this story of mine before, but I hope you enjoy it. Next week I promise to bring some lightness to this blog. I feel like I have been too much on the "feeling" and not on the "funny" but it's been an emotional time and it tends to bring out the sentimental side of me.

I remember being snuggled in bed at my Grandmother’s house, clutched in my hand was my beloved Lamby-Pie, a stuffed animal of a black faced lamb. Lamby-Pie was made of soft white lamb's wool, at least Lamby had been white, when I was originally given him but he had turned into a shade of well-loved beige over the years. I unconsciously rubbed his paw gently against my cheek as I waited, waited for the sound I knew would soon come.

It was Christmas morning and I was still very sleepy from staying up too late to open my “Non-Santa” presents on Christmas Eve. I loved Christmas Eve with all our family, and the presents of course, but I always loved Christmas morning more, because it's when my favorite present would come.

I was beginning to drift off to sleep again when it came, the sound of coffee beans being ground in the kitchen. It was the sound of my Grandmother starting her day. I couldn't wait any longer. I pulled back the covers and slipped into my new slippers and robe, because it was cold upstairs, not like my house far away in sunny California. I walked down the stairs quietly, careful not to step on any of the creaky spots, because I didn’t want to wake anyone else.

The windows were frosted over at the edges and outside there was a new snowfall, something I rarely saw. It was so beautiful that I had to stop and look. The snow twinkled in the early morning light like diamonds on a white blanket, but I didn’t want to spend too much time looking - not with my present waiting for me.

“Hello sweetheart, Merry Christmas! Come and give me a big hug.” My Grandmother called to me as I entered the kitchen.

I was held by my grandmother’s warm embrace. I could smell coffee and the special almond soap my grandmother used. I breathed it in… a smell I loved with all my heart, and still do. I held tightly to my beloved grandmother and before I fully let her go I squeezed her hard one more time.

“That was a big hug for a small girl!” My grandmother said as she pulled a small beautiful box, wrapped in shiny silver paper and white velvet ribbon, from her robe pocket. “Look, I found this under the tree. I think Santa left it for you. Why don’t you take it to the table while I make our special breakfast?”

I sat down and watched as my grandmother prepared our special breakfast of oatmeal with brown sugar. I forgot the beautiful package, still clutched in my hands, as we spoke, because it was this moment I'd waited all year for - it was the pink satin of my grandmother’s robe, not the red velvet of Santa’s which kept me up all morning. It was this special time, before the rest of the world woke up, when I had my grandmother all to myself that I looked forward to each year. It is these moments I will remember, for the rest of my life, as my favorite Christmas presents.

11 comments:

  1. What beautiful memories to last a lifetime. Wishing your family a very Merry Christmas from ours.

    Simba's Mom

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  2. Oh my...big lump in my throat and yes, they say that scents are what can transport us back to a treasured memory just as if we were there...You should think about writing a 'human' book, you have such a way with words!

    happyhappyjoyjoy to you and yours...

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  3. It's amazing how smells can be so evocative and bring back sometimes long forgotten memories. What a precious time you had with your grandmother. The warmth of her love has stayed with you. It was obviously a very precious time you shared.

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  4. That is beautiful, Meg.

    Merry Christmas

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  5. That touched my heart, Meg. What a wonderful memory...and you portrayed it so beautifully I felt like I was there looking in. ::wipes tears::

    Merry Chistmas to you, your sweet hubby and of course, Fin.

    love,
    Debbie

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  6. ::big smile::

    No wonder you love Christmas so much!

    Merry Christmas!
    Trish, Scott, & the Kats xx

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  7. I sooo loved this story and the imagery was beautiful.

    It touched me because I had a special relationship with my grandmother as well.

    she used to make me "special scrambled eggs" (just scrambled eggs but because SHE made them they were special and to this day they were the most delicious eggs I have EVER eaten)....she had a "fake fur" coat that I used to love to snuggle against while also holding a stuffed lamb (yep, it was from the back of her Corvair)...and she used to give me peppermint lifesavers (not a joke, she truly did)

    We are both blessed to have such wonderful and vivid memories of our grandmothers.

    Thank you for sharing!
    xoxoxo

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  8. Thanks for your kind words my friends. Happiest of Holidays to all of you.

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  9. Meg
    That is such a powerful memory. A certain smell can also trigger memories for me as well. Your Grandmother was very special. You were so very lucky to have her.
    xoxoxox

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  10. Meg THANK YOU for your lovely comment on my blog...YOU shouldn't be thanking ME, I THANK YOU...your strong and beautiful memories of your grandmother and your "special" time with her, enabled ME to experience mine all over again!!! I ADORE YOU and your writing!

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  11. This is just so beautiful. What a wonderful Christmas memory of your time with your Grandmother.

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