Saturday, December 09, 2006

The gift that just keeps on giving


A tree eating machine (preparing the tree for transport from the tree farm to the living room) The photo was taken the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Most families, I surmise, have some kind of Christmas tradition based on a gift that just keeps giving. It's often a fruitcake, that's nearly petrified after generations of being given and given again. But my family happens to like fruitcake, so another gift rose up to take its place. It’s a pair of leather anklets with a series of bells attached. You wear this when you are dancing as if you are American Indian at a pow-wow. Problem is, no self-respecting Native American, at least not one in his or her right mind, ever wore such an item. But my Dad made this when he was in the Boy Scouts, thinking he was dressing up like he was a real Injun, like the ones he'd seen in Roy Roger’s movies. And then, about the time my Dad moved out of his parent’s home, he gave his prize possession, this nerve racking anklet, to L., his much younger brother and my uncle. L. proceeded to drive their mother crazy. Then L., probably at the insistence of my Grandma, gave the bells to me so I could return the favor. For a time the bells were lost in my parents attic. Shortly after my brother and his wife had their first kid, I was going through stuff I’d left up in my parent’s attic and came across these bells. It was only natural for me to give them as a Christmas present to my nephew. The favor was returned when my daughter was three or four. And ever since, every year when we get the Christmas decorations out, she hears those bells ringing in a particular box and pulls them out and wears them around the house for an hour or two while I’ll gain sympathy for Cain, as I too have thoughts of doing in my brother. But this is about to change. Next to receive the gift is to be my youngest brother’s son. He’s at the right age to cherish such a gift and I’m sure this is just what the boy needs to send his dad over the edge.

16 comments:

  1. It looks like a good tree, but we need pictures of the bells!

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  2. We need pictures of the bells being used in the traditional sage family dance routine!

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  3. Heh. This is fun. We don't have anything like this (or fruitcake, either).

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  4. This is a great idea. I must think of something this year to do to my brother. Thanks!

    Visiting from Michele's today.

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  5. Ah, such a neat tradition! :) I don't know that we have any such tradition at Christmas. But for many years, two of my brothers use to send the same birthday card back and forth at each other's birthday.

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  6. All these calls for pics of the bells, I'll see what I can do, but I assure you the family doesn't have a traditional bell dance number... I take after my dad side of the family and I can assure you, ain't any of us Fred Astair. We can't maintain a beat or sing in tune for that matter.

    Dawn, you'll have to come up with a good tradition and tell us about it in about 30 years... (it takes at least that long to become a tradition, this has been going on much longer than that)

    Tim, I like the birthday card idea, it sure beats throwing away those cards, maybe you can get a new card only after the old one is filled up with comments. Glad I don't own stock in Hallmark.

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  7. Heh...nothing sweeter than passing on the joy I say. We do it the fruitcake way :)

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  8. I agree with Judy and Diane--we need to see this "cherished" heirloom. I wonder what your Dad would have thought if he realized, as a boyscout, that he was making a family treasure.

    Michele sent me, Sage.

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  9. Well that makes me wish we had some dreadful gift to pass around!
    When I went to the Southern Living Christmas show in Charlotte a booth was giving away fruit cake samples and I was horrified that my mother and aunt made a b-line to get a slice. Gross! I couldn't believe anyone really actually liked the stuff!

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  10. thats Fabulous! and funny. and im glad im not in that particular gifts circle of receivers, however, the tradition is haeartwarming.

    for years before my grandfather died (my mother's father), he and my dad made jokes back and forth about each of them being old. Thus at christmas and birthdays the same half full bottle of "geritol" (if you dont recall geritol, it was a liquid supplent for old people popular in the 80s) was lovingly wrapped and passed back and forth between the two. my grandfather was buried with that bottle... dad tucked it into grandpa's casket during the viewing. As sad as it was to bury my grandfather, nearly everyone smiled when they saw that bottle tucked in with him.

    thanks for the good memories.
    michele sent me.

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  11. Fruitcake isn't my favorite, but I don't hate it.

    Like the others, I want to see the bells. Great tradition.

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  12. Yes, Sage, show us your bells. In my family, it's the bird clock. The chime on every hour is a different bird whistle. It seems to have stopped at my younger brother without having ever made it to me but much like you, I'm sure he is just waiting for the perfect moment. Gotta love brothers.

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  13. Hilarious! Would love to hear how your brother receives this delightful gift to his son... ;)

    Michele says hi

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  14. Would love to see a picture of those!! A wonderful tradition, by the way....!

    I've never seen that contraption before that is in that photograph....Neat!

    And I've never cared for Fruit Cake, myself....!

    To answer your question about Great Neck....it's the way it looks on the map..it comes out in the shape of a "neck" sort of...and then right next to it is Little Neck...!

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  15. No tradition in our family of the gift giving kind. We often burn CRP ground on Christmas Day because we have enough people to do so.

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