Seattle

I’ve been doing some cleaning up and out, coming across things I haven’t looked at in years. Emotions seesawed as I finally got rid of all the wedding cards (yep, I’ve schlepped those around for 35 years), the magazines I used to plan our wedding and toys I cherished as a girl. 

It came from the Emerald City, a place I’ve never visited. I quiet reminder of my childhood. Simple and shiny, with 6 charms, 4 of them original and two that I added when I was going through my cowgirl phase. 

I was a little too old to get a charm bracelet as they were no longer fashionable. I have no real memory of wearing it but I’ve kept it. In treasure boxes here and there, it has followed me from home to home. This Bracelet is the only gift that my father ever gave me (if you don’t count a gorgeous head of hair, which I alone received). I remember having mixed emotions when I opened the bracelet box. He had abandoned us and his support was sketchy at best. We were hurt, angry and resentful, yet we still needed him to cherish us; to show he cared. Something he could not do. My mother, still loving the man who could not be true, and us kids, sadly, receiving him like a hungry beggar before a feast. Later there were many years of no contact  

My dad and I eventually reconciled when he got sober and made his amends. He became my friend and confidant. So glad I kept this little memory.