Christmas is coming

If you think the title of this post sounds like crazy talk, you're right

I'm fanatical about a lot of things, and one of them is giving the perfect Christmas ornament to people as a present. This passion-slash-obsession is rooted in the conviction that one's holiday decor should be a reflection of the life she's lived. My ornaments, I like to think, could be a biography of sorts.

So I've already started hitting up stores that have their ornaments out and thus far, I have one for my mom, for my sister, for one of my nephews, and for a recently engaged friend (it's a ring!). Just two more to go!

I like to imagine my nephews unpacking to put up their first Christmas tree in whatever lives they set out to make for themselves. They'll unwrap the ones that I've given them, noting how I took care to add the year and their name to each and every one. Pressumably, they'll think something like "my aunt has amazingly good taste" and they'll tell everyone in the room how awesome I am. And, most importantly, they'll have this way of understanding the love that we lavished on them when they were too little to remember.