And now....the Magic

Next time I start whining about not feeling loved, I hope someone will slap me and remind me of today. In my family, instead of buying everyone a gift, the adults all bring a generic gift, and we play that game where you draw a number and pick a gift when your number comes up. Or, you can steal someone else's gift. Number 1 is the best number to draw, because you get to go first, but then at the end, you get your choice of any gift you want. The gift I brought to exchange was a wire flower looking thing that holds pictures or notes. I felt it was kind of boring, so I had the idea to print up a bunch of pictures of myself, and put them on the holder. I figured it would make the gift so much more desirable, or at least it would get a good laugh. So, my niece Tamie got number one, and she picked my picture holder. She laughed and asked if she had to keep my pictures in it if she kept it. I said no, but that I was sure she would want to. Her 8 year old daughter Haley saw the gift and she says, "Mom....I WANT that." Then she turns to me and says, "And I would keep your pictures in it." I should tell you that Haley and I have always had a special bond. I think it was because I introduced her to my old Pee Wee's Playhouse videos, and she loved them. I was the only adult that she invited to her birthday slumber party when she turned 7. So, Haley takes a hold of this picture holder and hangs on to it while everyone else chooses their gifts. No one stole the gift from Tamie, and then it came her turn to decide if she wanted to keep it, or pick any other gift. As she got up to look around at the other gifts, Haley begged her to keep the picture holder and actually got tears in her eyes as she held it close to her and looked at the pictures. Everyone in the room, especially me, was shocked at how important this gift seemed to her. Tamie chose to keep it. You know...in my head, I know that there are people out there who love me, but it's just not often enough that I really FEEL it like I did today. It was a great reminder to spend more energy cultivating the relationships I do have and spend less energy fretting about the relationships I don't have.