Get the feedA belt and a photo
Monday, Jan 05th 2009
A few posts back, Nancy asked if there was a gift that lit up the kid's eyes this Christmas. We had a few gifts that did just that. First off, I have to confess, we gave Caitlin and Annalise iPhones this Christmas. They squealed with delight and their eyes lit up like the billboards in Times Square when they opened their packages. Those phones have not left their sides in eleven days. William got four guppies and Christopher landed Rockband – all these gifts were received with great excitement.
However, it was another gift that not only lit up our eyes, but also warmed our hearts. Underneath the wrapping paper were a leather belt and a framed photo. The belt was about four inches wide with a unique buckle and design – like nothing you could find in a department store these days. Caitlin loved it at first sight. She has an affinity toward belts and accessories in general, and my mom (Waipo) is well aware of this.
“Thanks Waipo! I love it,” she said trying it on. The belt fit like a glove around her tiny waist.
When Caitlin turned to the photo, she realized it was an old black and white of Waipo in the early 1960’s. Waipo, with a beehive hairdo, stood model-like in a fitted dress. If you looked closely, you could see she was wearing that same belt which was now wrapped around her granddaughter’s waist. Written on the photo were the words, “To My Dearest Caitlin, With All My Love, Waipo”.
“I always wished I had a picture of my own Waipo” my mom said as we all stood admiring the young woman in the photo and taking in the poignancy of the gift.
Jean Yih Kingston
Jean Kingston, who co-founded SixSeeds, spends many of her waking hours in her SUV hauling carloads of children to various and sundry playing fields across the state of Massachusetts. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.
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