Cherished in Family History

Most women have precious things they hold dear. Often little things, most are cherished because of their origin. It's these things that we hold with high regard and teach our families to do the same. In my childhood home, mother cherished things that were 'wedding gifts' and we all knew to treat them with tender-loving care. Sis and I would wash and dry wedding china with just a little more care than other dishes. And alas, if a piece of 'wedding gift' glassware broke, it was sad indeed. Mother's English teacup and saucer collection consisted of eight or ten sets that were all 'wedding gifts'. They were highly cherished and rarely used. Instead they were displayed in a pretty cabinet and dusted each week with care. Even wedding linens were held in high regard: tablecloths, doilies, or satin cushions. Most weathered our childhood years and even the years when our children were the little ones visiting Grandma's house. And how these cherished mementos cling to us, or we to them, when life takes its sad turns. When Mother passed away, sis and I spent one day a week together for an entire summer, sorting and organizing and dividing things up. Those sad days contained much sweetness as well, as they provided us with the opportunity to speak of our memories and to touch and feel things that had long been forgotten. Some of Mother's things were donated or sold, but many were divided between sis and me as a link to Mom. We took extra, special care to not give away or sell anything that had been a 'wedding gift'. Looking back from this perspective, we realize that some of these things were of small monetary value, but they are cherished just the same for what they were and are. If it was a 'wedding gift' it went in a special place; a place for 'family history' and to be passed along to future generations. Such sentimentality, but no regrets for cherishing those things which remind us of mom. Cherished, just like we cherish the memory of her.

Photo: tablecloths like Mom's at Elm Street Antiques; sis has them and I have no pictures of the originals.