“Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family.” Anthony Brandt
What souvenirs are must-haves for you when you travel? Do you spend time searching for the perfect magnet, t-shirt, coffee mug or piece of art?
I certainly do. If you were to look at my refrigerator right now, you’d see a wealth of magnets from around the world. I often find myself looking at the fridge and thinking about the wonderful trip to Bali or Isle of Skye or Phuket. The left side of my fridge literally has no available space for another magnet.
While the magnet is kind of my easy “must-have” from my travels, I also return from almost every trip with a Christmas ornament, if I can find one. I love the holidays, and I love how the 3,000 lights I always put on the tree help the ornaments sparkle and glint. I am not sure there is a single ornament on my tree that came from a retailer or a place like Target, and I kind of like that about our tree.
As I took down all of the holiday decorations the other day and carefully wrapped up each ornament in tissue paper, I spent a little more time thinking about each one. Some were hand-made by my daughters, a handprint painted in green and red from preschool days or a more sophisticated cross that had been painted, adorned with sparkles and then laminated. Some ornaments were creations from a glass blowing or pottery class we had taken, but so many other ornaments were from my trips either solo or with my kiddos and parents.
This Christmas was a little different for me because my oldest daughter wasn’t even home for the actual day, and we celebrated what may be the last Christmas with my dad a few days later. With the latter detail on my mind, I took my time removing each ornament from the tree, pausing to think about how each came to be. Truth be told, I’d leave it all up through mid-January because I just don’t feel as if one month is enough. But, alas, I had to bring order to my house.
Prior to the post-Christmas gathering in North Carolina, I had put together a slide show–I know it–so 2010–for my mom and dad, and in it there were photos from Christmases past and from trips my daughters had taken with my parents to Alaska, Washington, Montana, Canada, North Carolina, and Florida. I had to play the slide show to myself many times prior to the actual viewing so I wouldn’t break down in an emotional ball.
But, finding those photos from my online storage provider and going through each album and reflecting on those memories was just like taking down the ornaments. It made me smile. It made me appreciate how grateful I am for all the travel I did as a kid, which certainly inspired my love of travel to this day, and it made me grateful that my dad wanted my daughters to be a part of very big trips.
In short, this holiday has been a mash-up of emotions, of reflective times, of solemn times, but also of happiness and joy. I sure hope I have another Christmas with my dad, but I know I have these photos and ornaments that will always bring back the memories of very wonderful travel days and wonderful holidays with my very special dad.
Even though the future is so uncertain and unknown in light of the ongoing pandemic and all the other things, I am going to continue to plan new trips, plan new adventures, and keep the family tradition of traveling ongoing. Each ornament contains its own special memory, just like the photos and the slideshows, and I will continue to add to my stock, even if my tree starts to get a little cluttered.
Wishing you all a wonderful and Happy New Year and the best to your travel plans for 2022!
“Travelling in the company of those we love is home in motion.”–Leigh Hunt
Tales from a Solo Girl Traveling the World 