Gifts Recieved - Gifts Treasured

 Over the years I find some of the greatest treasures to be those that were created or embellished by hand, not machine. Creation and art is life and means more than you can find at any superstore. We need to celebrate the hand made arts more, the people that create them, and the people who give them. They are truly beautiful.

The first is a hand made cross, I think it was crocheted. To be honest, crochet, knitting, and the like are things I know little about. (I'm just learning to knit on my own.) Someone made these cross bookmarks for me and my siblings but I can't remember who. An older family friend perhaps. (I feel bad for this, but I can't help it.) Some of them were of only one color, but I favored the one with the rainbow of colors. For years it hung on the bulletin board in my bedroom.

The little girl figurine was a gift from a my grandmother years ago for Christmas, crafted  by a friend of hers from church. The tiny book in the doll's in hand is "Christy." It is a movie and mini series that we shared. It doesn't sit more than 2 inches high.

The small chest was a gift fro a friend in high school. She found a small chest and stained it in a cedar to match the cedar chest I had made years before. I use it now to hold coins I've collected from different around the world as well as my small collection of pressed pennies. It sits on a shelf in my room amongst old family photos.

Embrace the gifts that mean the most because they were chosen just for you, made with someone's own hand.