It was 1973, and John Wanamakers had just hired me into their executive training program. My first real responsibility was to run the Trim-A-Tree department. I was so serious about my career I don't think I even took a day off that Holiday Season, impressing my first boss with my work ethic and business skills. Forty-eight years later, he realizes the businesswoman he married is now a crazy artist. Maybe it was the lights, the smells, the spirit of Christmas, but I was captivated by the history, the meaning, and the beauty of ornaments. I became obsessed with collecting. I would scoop up the beautiful German hand blown at the after-Christmas sales. Search out shops that sold unique ones, artists that created one of a kind. But I truly loved the tag and yard sale finds. Shiny Bright ornaments were my favorite. I learned that these were very popular during World War 2. They were sold by Woolworths five-and-ten-cent stores for two and ten cents each. I remember my mother saying she would save a quarter from her food budget and put my sister in a stroller to go and buy a few ornaments for her first Christmas.
The history of Shiny Bright is Interesting Read Here
Ornaments became the go-to gift from my husband for Christmas, birthdays, and when he traveled. As I hang each one, I am constantly flooded with memories of that holiday past. Where we were in our lives that year, was it the year we were moving into our first home? Or the year my tree fell over and broke many ornaments, my Dad showed up at my door just in time to help. My very pregnant sister brought me over an ornament to cheer me up, and she had her baby that night. The collection I started for my children, always a tree in their bedroom. The year I cried hanging my Mom's decorations after she passed away. But they are the memories attached to my ornaments. As I decorate with my yard sale finds, I wonder whose tree this was on before mine? Was it during the war? Was her husband fighting for our country? Was this ornament bought for a newly married couple's first Christmas or handed down and treasured by an older couple. Was this a happy holiday filled with cheer, or were they feeling lost and lonely? So many emotions and stories flood my heart and imagination. Just maybe, as I place each ornament on a branch, I am honoring and preserving a bit of their history while creating new memories for my family. Merry Christmas, and may your memories fill you with happiness this season. Michele
