“Leave those two until the last” she instructed. “And open the bag that says #1 first.”
A pile of presents lay at my feet. We took turns opening gifts, oohing and ahhing at each other’s new treasures.
Getting to the bottom of my pile, I picked up bag #1. Reaching inside, I felt a small glass container. I pulled a glass mason jar from the bag. Strips of white paper with words written on them filled the glass.
I knew just what it was.
“I can’t believe it!” I exclaimed. “You saved this all these years?”
Twelve years ago, in graduate school and stretched for money, I wanted to give family members a meaningful present for Christmas. Always interested in family history and the keeper of all the old photos of my ancestors, I decided to give a gift that would tell me more about the member’s of both mine and my husband’s family. That Christmas, I gave them legacy jars. I typed up a list of questions for them to answer about their past and gave them a journal to record the answers. My hope was to receive back the completed journal to pass down to my children one day.
Time passed. Life happened. There were moves, marriages, births, surgeries, and travels.
When my children were born I had a renewed desire to find a way to document family stories. I interviewed one of my grandparents and wrote down his responses. But then my other grandparents passed away a couple of years ago, and I felt a greater urgency to learn more about the people in our family.
Christmas is a season of waiting and of anticipation. Waiting, while hard, is often rewarded with the most wondrous of things. The seeds we plant, water, and nurture grow into colorful and fragrant flowers. A tiny fetus in the womb develops over nine months until it is ready to be born and placed in its mother’s awaiting arms.
And after waiting for my mother-in-law’s story, this Christmas I opened the second bag and inside was the journal I had given her twelve years before. Inside the journal I found her story typed out and glued onto each page. She had answered my questions, recorded her story in words, and gave me her legacy for me to pass on to my children.
It was the perfect gift and well worth the wait.
I’m starting out this new year counting this and all the gifts of grace (#2001-2026)
a trip to Atlanta in December: enjoying light shows, tubing on the snow, painting pottery, a trip to the outlets
A small Christmas party at our house with a few friends
oreo truffles and egg nog punch
spending Christmas with family, fun gifts for the kids, new shoes for me:)
taking a few weeks off from blogging to rest and reflect
Having an articles of mine in the January edition of Proverbs 31 Magazine
my husband completing everything on my honey do list:)
finishing the kid’s digital scrapbooks for this past year
deciding on my one verse and word for this new year
getting the house back to normal
organizing closets-one of my favorite things to do!
my husband’s help with the kids
roasting marshmallows over the fire pit
telling jokes around the fire
encouraging friends
the slowness of January
the power of the gospel in daily life
forgiveness and grace
Downton Abbey season 3!
Linking up with these friends:
Christina, I found you via “My Freshly Brewed Life” and thought I’d visit! What a great idea to give a legacy jar!…and what a wonderful gift to be able to hand down to your children. I think I’ll steal this for my mom this Mother’s Day! (I have all my grandma’s diaries that span decades, and they are a TREASURE!!)
Also, I love your “one word” for this year. I’d like to invite you to “SEEK” with us each Monday morning on my blog, where we link up around a single verse. I know you’d bless us with rich insights! Linky is open all week. All the best!
Thanks for visiting! I look forward to checking out the link up. Blessings!
I LOVE this idea. I’ve done some chronicling of my family’s history, as well as, parent’s personal stories-putting them in book form. But I’ve never thought of asking others to participate like you have here, Christina. I love the idea and am thankful for your encouragement to all of us to capture these fleeting family memories and moments.
Thanks! The gifts that last the longest and mean the most often don’t cost a thing. It’s important to pass on the stories in our families. Blessings!
This is wonderful! What a beautiful gift and regift
. I’m sharing this one, my friend.
Thanks, Laura! It’s a great treasure!
Sounds like an awesome Christmas; what a gift to be treasured by your family. Also, can u organize my closets?
Lol. Sure!
That is such a neat idea! I would love to have that for my children!
Here’s a link to questions I used if you want to make one yourself: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1C8IVab7WYG7kJF0m0MIeL9fnuHZ6EO0Q0E9bl3eQr10/edit
Thanks for visiting!
Oh my heart!!! I remember you sharing the story of the legacy jars awhile back…loved how this brought me full circle with you!
and congrats on the Proverbs 31 mag!! yay!
I still haven’t seen Downton Abbey! is it something I need to watch from Season 1?
Love and hugs to you, friend!
Thanks, friend! Yes, you would need to watch it from the beginning. It’s about the daily lives of a family and their servants so you’d need to know all that has happened to appreciate the current season. It’s addictive, I’ll warn you:)
Thanks for sharing this, I love the idea for the jar!
Thanks! And thanks for stopping by!
Dear Christina
I also found your blog through Barbie’s Freshly Brewed Life and am sooo glad. What an excellent idea for a meaningful gift. I certainly will try something similar in the future.
Much love XX
Mia
Oh I hope you do! It will mean so much to you and your family. Thanks for visiting!
what a wonderful legacy gift to receive! The wait was well worth it I am sure!
It definitely was:) Thanks for stopping by!
What a beautiful idea,and a wonderful, wonderful gift for you! Stopping by from SDG. Blessings on your day!
It was such a wonderful gift! And so meaningful. Thanks for visiting!
Beautiful gift! And something you will cherish forever, yes?
I gave my dad a book to fill out expecting him to never have time for such a thing…six years later, he gave it back. I treasure his words written in his writing.
Notes and stories written in someone’s hand are so valuable, aren’t they? And what a wonderful surprise when he returned it to you. I know that feeling:) Blessings!
This is something wonderful! As I type this, I am listening to a message about leaving a legacy for our children. Perhaps this is a grace and God’s confirmation.
I love it!
I love when I hear about the same thing from more than one source. Confirmation indeed:)
What an amazing gift! This is definately something I’d like to do. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks, Barbie! Blessings!
What a cool idea! Love receiving and giving these kinds of gifts. Those are the ones we remember! Thanks for linking up this week.
Thanks, Eileen. Yes, those are the gifts that linger long in the mind and heart. Thanks for visiting!
My family is all about meaningful gifts. I think this tops them all. Knowing your family’s history gives a steadiness to life-a feeling of purpose that spills into our days. Love your blessing list, too.
Yes! And that’s what I want my children to experience, to see their place in the family. Blessings!
I LOVE this idea- and how sweet that your gift came back to you. What an amazing gift you’ll have to pass on to your children. There’s something powerful about capturing our family stories in print, isn’t there?
It is powerful! I enjoyed reading it and learned more about my mother-in-law. I will treasure it always. Thanks for stopping by!
That’s an awesome gift idea!
Thanks! So glad you stopped by!
What a wonderful gift! And I love your idea of a “honey to do list”. ;P
Honey Do lists are the best-especially when they get completed!
Loving the idea of the legacy jar! Beautiful post!