You know what those are, I'm sure - they're little bundles of inexpensive items that someone who loves you picks up when they're out and about that captures their eye and makes them think of you. Sometimes it might be a food Care Package, full of goodies that are sure to be your favorites. Most holiday meals result in a food Care Package to take home with you that provides meals for you for several days.
My Mom loves her kids, plain and simple. She now extends that love to her two Grandsons and creates Care Packages for them whenever she's out shopping. Personally, I have kept things she's given me over the years that have very little monetary value but that hold such loving significance for me that they are priceless items.
When I was very young, my Mom gave me two small pottery trinket boxes that had gold leafed edges and pastel colors. I remember her watching me open the boxes they came in and telling me, "Maybe you can use them for jewelry as you grow up." I couldn't have been more than 9 or 10 years old at the time, of an age where toys were usually more desirable gifts, but those two little trinket boxes are still with me. I use them for jewelry items that are dear to me and each time I open them, I am embraced by that inestimable, indefinable sense of love from my Mother. All is right in my world and I feel accepted, loved and secure.
With age comes the recognition that Care Packages aren't always corporeal. Many times we send Care Packages along to a loved one in the form of a phone call, or, as is common in this technological age, an email, a Facebook or Twitter post, a text or an e-card. Prayers are yet another, more highly energized form of a Care Package. I think anything that touches our heart, reaches out to someone else in the same way and leaves the day brighter as a result is a form of this time honored tradition.
No, it isn't necessary to have a physical item to deem something a Care Package. I talk to my Mom daily on the phone, sometimes many times a day and that will fill me up inside with those same emotions. She makes me laugh and she understands me like no other person on Earth does. We always take pieces of those we love with us in our memories, so again, it isn't necessary to have a physical item to identify with. There's just something so sweet about the fact that my Mom still does this for me and my sister and brother, even though we are adults.
The nice thing is that this habit has continued - by my Mom's example, I tend to do this same thing with Care Packages. I don't have children yet, but I tend to pick up those small items for friends and family members when I spot something I know will be perfect for them and give them a little moment of surprise and pleasure. I also tend to shop throughout the year for Christmas gifts for family. In fact, just the other day I ran across something that is ideal for my brother and I snapped it up to tuck away for Christmas.
True to her loving nature, when I mentioned this to my Mom recently, she said, "Take me with you the next time you go shopping; I want to help add to the Care Package." I am confident that the package we send will be chock full of useful, fun, girlie items, as well as some things to munch on, and a few things that are just frivolous and cute in nature, such as games and toys to fill the long hours when Whitney and her friends are bored and homesick.
Life is challenging for all of us on a daily basis. There are so many reasons to choose to dwell on negatives. I have found that doing for others, as was taught to me by the example my wonderful Mom set, is a sure-fire method to lift any gloom surrounding you. There's something so delightful about picking up a small, completely foolish item that costs very little, with a loved one in mind, simply to tease a smile out of them. It is a small affirmation that, yes, you matter - you are loved, you are in that person's thoughts and you deserve to be showered with that type of warm attention for no particular reason.
If I could, I would gift every person I know with the relationship I enjoy with my Mom. I think she's that special. And as is that special relationship between loving parent and loving child, she feels the same way about me. She shows it in those Care Packages...those little touches of whimsy, those little inconsequential items that I rarely indulge myself with, those little unusual decorative items that have no particular purpose other than to make me smile. That's my Mom loving me in her quiet, gentle way.
Don't get me wrong, she loves me outwardly too - she showers me with hugs when I'm in her presence, and when we are together, we have that silent language that is shared between family members. We can also be together and not speak a word for hours - simply being together is the joyful thing, especially given that it doesn't happen as often as we'd both like. Dratted Life gets in the way, as it does for all of us. We laugh often. I think that is a beautiful thing.
So, I continue the loving tradition of Care Packages. They make me happy to create and give them to others, just as much as I enjoy receiving them. I think they make a profound difference in the world, simply because they denote thoughtful, loving attention towards others given for the joy of making another person smile. We need more of that in this world....Care Packages should be present in every walk of life.
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5 comments:
Dawn, bless you and your Mum. I too had a beautiful Mum who is now not with us, who used to give me little tokens of love for no other reason than to put a smile on my face. She did this for her friends, and my children. I find myself doing the same, but without the ease Mum used to do it. I worry more, I think maybe 'they' won't like the gesture. But Mum used to know or trust that if it is done with love, then that's all that matters. I know what you mean that there not been enough room to write how wonderful your Mum is, I have started a blog http://despina-angelguided.blogspot.com where I want to keep her memory alive, whilst I share the pain of grief. Thank you for this post :)
When I read your words I remembered the packages we'd get from my Grandmother for Christmas as she lived far away. Handknit mittens, little trinkets - nothing expensive, but filled with love - I loved those gifts most of all. Thankyou for reminding me! I will have to send one to my sister before her baby is born.
Your mother sounds lovely - having a good mom (or dad) is such a life-giving anchor in life - I hope to be that for my kids.
Thanks Dawn for a wonderful post!
~m
More than a story and words, it is your DNA.
I love this post. My mother was queen of the care package. It is one of the hard parts of having her gone. The great thing is, I am my mother and continue on the tradition thinking of her every time. The circle of life.
What lovely comments you've all left me on this post! I'm always captured by how polarizing blogs can be - in that, if I feel something strongly enough to write about it, chances are, many others have similar thoughts, emotions and reactions. It creates the most beautiful sense of community!
AngelGuided, I ache for your loss of your beloved Mom. I know some day I will experience that same loss, and I suppose that is another thing that drives me to write down the nuances of love that I have so clear and present right now, to have them in the future. I'm glad this post brought you a sense of love and closeness to your Mom, however briefly.
Marcella, I love that you had Care Packages from your Grandmother! It is beautiful to have that anchoring presence to give us each strong foundations. I see your Grandmother's sparkle in your writing, my friend, as she sewed seeds of beauty in you with her loving gestures. I think it is equally beautiful that you're going to continue this loving tradition with your sister's baby! Thank you for your wonderful comment.
The next comment, I apologize for not being able to translate your name, but I loved the statement you made. We are a sum of those experiences in life, after all.
Bethie, you always make me smile! Yes, this post was a map of who I am in many ways, my southern DNA speaking loudly. I am not surprised you recognized the patterns. Thank you, dear one, for your comment.
Marla, I loved your comment of, "I am my Mother." That's simply beautiful, and so true where love exists - it never dies, continuing to move forward with each generation. Thank you so much - I am happy you enjoyed this post!
Namaste', to all of you.
~ Dawn
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