Jenifer’s Journal Everyone old is new again
It’s never too late to be what you might have been. — George Eliot
After my last two less-than-cheerful “holiday” columns — my brother suggested that I start including a mental health hotline number at the bottom if I planned to continue in such a saturnine vein — the above title may smack a bit of the ‘bi-polar’ but bear with me.
When I cast an unjaundiced eye, an Island eye, maybe, over this Christmas season so far, I have to admit that, national and international traumas notwithstanding, it has been a particularly sweet, simple and lovely one — a gift in itself. Gifts: in this difficult year they’ve come from unexpected places. You know what has become a wonderful addition to our Island traditions— right up there with the Center-hosted Halloweens, the 10K, the Chicken Barbecue, the Memorial Day Parade, etc., etc.?
The Shelter Island School’s “Christmas Boutique” — where everything old really does become new again in the eyes of our elementary shoppers looking for the perfect gifts for their family and friends. And, guess what — they find them!
My younger grandchildren, 7 and 9, couldn’t wait until Christmas to give their Boutique-bought presents to me and their parents. The black cat candle-holder from my grandson, and the little beribboned china (Spode, no less) “gift box” from my granddaughter that fits perfectly under my tiny Christmas tree — I realized in that moment that they were what I’d always wanted.
Being given a gift by someone that confirms irrefutably how well they know you and how much they love you anyway? That’s something of a little miracle. Many of us go around convinced in our heart of hearts that if you really knew us you couldn’t love us — not true. As “Love, Actually” — a movie from 2003 that’s on my list of neo-classic Christmas flicks — illustrates, the ways, means and types of gifts we can give each other are limited only by the borders of our hearts.
I decided that, before I move on to contemplating the possible gifts (or lack of them) this New Year may have in store for us, it might be illuminating to give a nod to those special gifts already received. What follows is a sampling of the answers I harvested when I asked Islanders what gift they’d been given that most showed them how well they were known by the giver.
On line at the Pharmacy: Clearly romance is not dead in James E.’s marriage — he immediately noted the pair of “lined jeans from my wife, Linda.” Behind the counter, Suzanne F. happily offered, “The electric kettle from my daughter, Kimi,” while Lisa fondly described the monogrammed leather backpack that her husband had given her “so I could look stylish walking to work.”
Makes Grand Avenue a little grander, right?
Customer Matthew A. was at a loss to think of an example, but then he said, “Here’s an example of the opposite. Long ago, someone gave me a surfboard, but I don’t surf. But I hung it up on my wall and it stayed there for years.” People.
From the Heights Post Office: Picking up a package at the counter, Maura M. immediately cited the “cookbook I’d been begging for from my husband.” Seems to me that smacks of more than a little self-interest on someone’s part. Behind the counter, Michael J. spoke of the picture of his grandfather that his wife had enlarged and made into a blanket.
That would warm anyone’s heart.
Pat H. mentioned the sharing of a series of beautiful holiday dinners to which she’d been invited this year — first at her son’s, then with her 99-year-old mother-in-law, and the last at her daughter’s home. On my way out, when I asked Rob G., right away he proffered his receipt of a letter from a dear old friend who he hadn’t heard from for years. So many kinds of gifts.
From the IGA: Cashier Patty H. knew immediately — “the battery-powered heated vest from my daughter!” Too bad they don’t make those available at the door along with the baskets. Inventory manager, Rafael M. pointed down at his new blue sneakers — “I love sneakers,” he grinned. From guess who: Co-worker Patty H..!
And, accosted in the parking lot, it took Brion M. less than a second to say, “A Star Trek NC 11701 from my twin sister.” Sounds like a ZIP code — but, with all those examples, there wasn’t a Ferrari or a trip to Europe in the bunch. No, just perfect gifts.
This New Year can be a perfect gift to ourselves — however old we may be it’s a chance to dust off any of our old, unused talents and dreams and, by using them, make them — and ourselves — new again. Happy New Year!
