Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Another Odd Anniversary to Celebrate

This week I received a small box in the mail. It contained a butterfly necklace from my Aunt in California...my strange Aunt in California. It seemed strange to receive a present (and yes, I assumed it was for me, and was not a silver necklace intended for my husband) when my birthday was a while back, and Christmas is still a ways off. So I opened the card next.

I'm sure your mother taught you like mine did to always open the card before the present, but I've stopped doing this since I got married. Mostly, because my mother-in-law has a habit of telling you what she got you in the card, and then is disappointed you aren't more surprised when you open the gift. I try to still open the card first if my mother is around, but other than that, I don't worry about it. And the box wasn't wrapped, so it sort of just fell open.

Regardless, the card said something to this effect:

Dear Heather, Your grandmother loved butterflies, and wore butterfly jewelry quite often. I hope this necklace will remind you of her as we celebrate her one-year anniversary in heaven. Love, Your Crazy Aunt

One might think, upon reading this note, that the necklace in question was something from grandmother's butterfly collection that might bear some sentimental value. But, no. This is silver, and grandmother always wore gold. And I've certainly never seen this necklace, so it holds no sentimental value for me. So my aunt actually went into a store and bought multiple pieces of butterfly jewelry (both my sisters received similar packages) for this express morbid reason. I can just imagine the overly friendly clerk getting a little freaked out when they ask my aunt if these are gifts for a special occasion.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is odd, but maybe it's more for her than for you.

Heather said...

Yes, that's my guess, too -- something that is part of her own grief process. I also think she's decided it's her job to make sure we don't forget our grandmother.