Of Rings and Things...

So I've been thinking about family a lot the past few days. Grandfather William's big adventure meant family time together -- and time to sort through "things". I'm big into "things". I have a few new ones now -- the cookie jar that my Grandmother received as a wedding shower gift that occupied the same kitchen shelf for 60 years. A cross-stitch I made for them of the lighthouse in Cape May -- the one behind our wedding pictures -- the beach they loved so much. Even Joe returned to our house with "Kennedy for President" bumper stickers he peeled very carefully from the inside of the closet door in my Mother's childhood bedroom.

It is the little things that often bring back the biggest memories.

Take these rings, for instance. My Mother came home with them in a sandwich bag. They are the wedding rings that belonged to her Grandmother and then eventually my Grandmother, and now my Mom. I was struck by how much they look like mine. One set purchased in the 1920s. Another in the year 2000. Same rings. Same size. Different generations.

My Grandma left behind volumes and volumes of scrapbooks with rows of pictures titled and dated in an orderly fashion. Same scrapbooking idea. Same attention to detail. Different generations.

I look around my family and I see myself. I look around my family and see the future for my own daughters. I look at those rings and I see the hands that used to wear them. I see them very clearly. Different generations. Forever tied together.