GIFTS

Saturdays for me are typically spent either working in my yard if the weather is nice or cleaning the house. I enjoy puttering around from room-to-room when I am cleaning and often get distracted by something that catches my eye and takes me off on a tangent. Last Saturday was no different. 

I found myself in the master bath and at one point I glanced over at the wall with my shelf and Mexican tin items. One was sent to me by a dear friend who blogs over at Secret Notebooks-Wild Pages. But what really caught my eye this particular day was that small whistle hanging from the towel rod, suspended by the original orange thread in which the gift was received years ago. And when I say years ago, I mean exactly that: probably a minimum of 30-40 years ago.

 Here is a close-up of that wonderful whistle, given to me by my late friend Mary. Mary made this whistle herself, strung it on this orange thread, and gifted it to me. It has been hanging either on this shelf or another one at my former home for that length of time. Gifts from friends are hard to put away. They mean something special to me even when they are the smallest of things. And sometimes the smaller the better.

 Seeing this whistle took me right back to Mary and what she represented to me. She was so creative and smart. She was sometimes quiet and unassuming but when you least expected it she would speak up and tell you exactly what was on her mind and even defend you if she knew you were right about something. And that happened more than once for me. She stood up for me and voiced her opinion regarding what she felt was a misunderstanding. I never expected this from her so when it happened it was always a pleasure to witness. It made me proud to hear her stand up for me.

 And seeing that small whistle made me look around my room at that moment and within a few feet I was able to find a few more wonderful gifts that she had graced me with when I knew her. I have always had them in a place that is close to my bedroom or bathroom because they meant so much to me; then and now. Now, even more because she is no longer with us but these items represent her spirit to me. She gave me this incense burner years ago also. I wish now that I would have written down someplace what year, what occasion, and if I knew where she purchased it or not. Often she would tell me the story behind the gift.

This small bear with the package of an arrow wrapped around its body and resting on its back was also something she gave to me. This was given to me way back in the '70's and was given to me when I moved to Siskiyou County to be with Bill. The bear symbol represents protection and with a fetish spirit bundle on his back he comes with extra protection. Even then Mary knew I would need extra protection and provided me with this "just in case". It has remained in a safe and sacred place since then. And even though in all that time since it was gifted to me I have only moved a few times, each time these gifts were carefully wrapped and displayed again at the new location.

Some gifts remain with us forever. And it is not because they are "things" that we just had to have, needed or even wanted. They were gifts. I looked up the word "gift" and some synonyms that really rang true for me were these: to empower, to endow with some power or faculty, and to invest. Mary did all of these for me in the time we were friends. And these gifts were just material objects that she handed me that represented what she, as a friend, already gave to me. I wish I could blow that whistle and call her back. Or that maybe I could give her a bear of her own with the spirit bundle tied on its back to provide her protection on her travels in her next adventure. But, when I burn incense in the burner she gave to me, it will send loving thoughts to her, wherever she might me. I think that me "finding" these gifts on Saturday reminded me of her once again and memories came flooding back. Perhaps that was what these gifts were given to me for: to endow me with memories of her. Whatever the reason, it is great knowing that she is always present with me in my thoughts. That is the gift that she truly gave to me: HERSELF.