A Christmas Card to You
From Us
We live, not by things, but by the meaning of things.
Antoine de St. Exupery
Ellie maintains the quality of the
Christmas card matters. “We shouldn’t send a cheap card,” she insists.
I confess. I found this card in a 99¢
Store in Orange County, California–and that’s not 99¢ a card but 30 cards for
99¢. (But you knew this wasn’t a 99¢ card the moment you opened the envelope.)
With a little distance from the purchase and the
perspective that distance allows, I suspect I was drawn to this card by
sentiment, because the design, especially the cheesy gold embossed foil,
reminded me of my Grandmother Searl’s decorations from the 1950s–how she
garlanded her bungalow with similar cheap cards strung above doorways and
windows. (And there’s nothing wrong with sentiment during the Holidays.)
In the fever of the biggest shopping
day of the year, I thought this card was more than okay and brought two boxes
of them home. That’s when Ellie immediately pronounced them cheap. “Look at the
printing. It’s off-center. That’s why they were discounted.” She paused and
added, “But that’s not the only reason. They’d be cheap with perfect printing.”
She paused again, then asked, “What will we do with 60 of these cheap cards?” But
I’m getting ahead of the story.
I bought the cards on the Friday
after Thanksgiving, when I was out and about for the day with our daughter
Katie who lives in Brea, California. Katie’s quite a shopper, and the 99¢ store
where I bought this card is one of her favorite bargain haunts. (It’s near the
Vietnamese sandwich shop Katie had to introduce me to, Lee’s Sandwiches.
By the way, the vegetarian sandwich I had on French bread at Lee’s was
outstanding and quite the bargain at $1.49; and the iced Vietnamese coffee was
a perfect complement!)
Following lunch, at the 99¢ store, Katie and I poured over
boxes of cards tossed in a bin at the entrance. Back and forth, we showed each
other various designs. It was like old times when Katie was 10 and not 35–which
is a little ironic, because Katie’s making a big transition.
Did you know Katie’s pregnant? She’s
going to birth to a boy in January–Brett Michael Bodnar, he’s already named. (The
Dad is Mike Bodnar.) Ellie and I were in California for Katie’s
Saturday-after-Thanksgiving baby shower.
Back at the Bodnar house, after
Ellie “dissed” my Christmas card purchase, and Katie and Mike joined in to
tease me about my chronic love of bargains, I surreptitiously began to place
the cards around the house: on the entertainment center, on the fire-place
mantle, among the photos and notes on the fridge. When Katie or Mike or Ellie
found a card, they groaned and removed it. I managed to stay a card or two
ahead of them the whole weekend. I hid one card a little more deceptively as my
parting carte de visite. Mike and
Katie will find it one day.
So you see, our Holiday greeting,
though it comes via a truly cheap (3.3¢) card, featuring two geese (why geese?)
surrounded by a gold embossed foil border, with printing that is definitely off
center, in faded red ink, is nevertheless rich in meaning.
Ellie and I share this meaning with you this Holiday
Season. So this card carries our wishes to you and yours:
May your Holidays also be full of meaning–old and new
meaning–
And lots of Love, too,
Particularly the satisfying, intimate Love of family
And those friends
Who are like family.
We count you as such a friend.
Along with the usual blessings of health and
prosperity,
May your New Year bring freshness and hope.
Most of all:
Now and throughout the year
May you discover and revel in the meaning
That holds our world together–
The meaning of things, yes,
But even more the meaning of those
Who love us
As we love them.
