Home for the Holidays
Although I was in Minnesota for a week, I didn't, technically, go to my hometown. Neither of my parents live there anymore, and most of my friends have moved away (if only to nearby Minneapolis). So I didn't spend much time outside the actual Twin Cities. And yet, Christmas 2009 was an unexpectedly nostalgic one. My mom made me a blanket from a pile of my high school era t-shirts. She also put together a book for both my brother and I. In it she wrote up bits of letters and notes she found from when we were young, along with pictures of us as small kids.
They are sweet, heartfelt gifts. Gifts I'm going to hang on to for a long time, that are gonna make the cut when I leave SF in the fall, and again when I move after that and so on.
They also feel strange. I was in debate and speech in high school and on one of the t-shirts on the blanket is the unofficial speech motto, "We Do For Fun What Most People Fear Worse Than Death!" And yet, just a few weeks ago when I read my story cycle work my knees shook beneath my jeans. This is not something that would have happened at fifteen. What happened, there?
The book, the things my mom wrote about us, are amazing. Amazing, of course, in a way that is particular to me (and I suppose, my brother and mom and dad, too). Though, dear blog readers, I think this passage may hold some relevance for you.
"Margaret is kitty-crazy. She pronounces kitty with l's in it- something like "Kiddle-iddle'ey." She is always on the lookout for our cat Louise in the house, and now she loves to look at the cats in our next door neighbor's window. They have three cats, and one or two are usually on the bedroom or front windowsills of their house."
And now you're thinking, TELL ME ABOUT IT!
Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 9:19PM
Reader Comments (2)
I was browsing through blogs, and yours certainly caught my attention. It is wonderful how your mother put your years of childhood into a book for you and your brother. You should show your blog readers a page or two. I can remember when I was young my mom made me sentimental gifts all the time, and as I look at them today I can see how much love was put into them. Hope you had a great holiday! I hope to see more blogs from you soon.
i LOVE that shirt idea! i have a few shirts left from high school. that would be a hoot :)
i was also on the debate/speech team and the one shirt i still have as an energizer bunny type character saying "they keep going and going and going" because our team had to travel at least 2 hours for any tournament and usually much more than that since we were the only largish school (272 graduating seniors in the whole county) in our area.
Ah memories :)