Wednesday, December 28, 2011

It's All In The Cards

Here are a few of the Christmas cards we got this year. How do you feel when you sit down and look at your Christmas card list every year? For me, it is the last year of my life flashing before my eyes, and even more than that, the extreme awareness of the passage of time. Each year there are new friends added. There are friends who have moved, either willingly or unwillingly. Some have gotten very ill and are in the hospital or nursing home, and some have passed away and need to be crossed off the list. It is with sadness and nostalgia that I make out my cards, which are the memories of a lifetime.



“I remembered the old days, went over all you've done, pondered the ways you've worked, Stretched out my hands to you, as thirsty for you as a desert thirsty for rain."
Psalm 143:3

Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”
For it is not wise to ask such questions.
Ecc. 7:10

30 comments:

Joanne said...

I was not able to send cards this year, but I like the way you wrote this post. Yes it is a reminder especially when we lose someone during that year. Here's hoping that your list gets longer instead of shorter next year.
Blessings, Joanne

SquirrelQueen said...

Pretty cards Ginny.
I only sent out a handful this year, a fraction of the number I usually send. The holiday came so quickly and I ran out of time. There were a couple of friends on my list who passed away, a divorce that meant new addresses and address changes by others. It is sad at times to go through the list.

BlueShell said...

So beautiful!!!
Psalm 119:2
"Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—"

May you have a 2012 full of God's blessings!
BShell

Nature Rambles said...

A wonderful mix of cards you have received. I used to send out a few cards but that has also stopped. But your cards made me think of the days when I used to choose plenty of cards and also receive likewise.

About your question on my blog, yes they sting like regular bees but only if aggravated. I've never been stung by the blue-banded bees!:)

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

Wow, you got a lot of cards. Seems they really dwindled this year - although I sent cards out.

Arti said...

Truly emotional post. Gradually everyone has to leave us, thats the truth of life. Thats why we must spread joy and happiness when alive so people remember fondly of us long after we are gone.
Beautiful cards Ginny.
Lovely post.

MadSnapper said...

oops! you found one thing we are not twins on. I have no card list and have not done cards in 20 years and even then only a few to ones who send them. i prefer email and to me cards were for the past when we had no contact because no email or facebook or phones. phones were so expensive. now we have instant access and daily access and no need to send cards. like walking next door to give a card to a neighbor makes no sense to me. now my mother was just like you are, she loved her list and kept every card she got. when she died she had boxes of cards all the cards she ever got.

Dawning Inspiration said...

I adore cards! They make me happy... sending as much as receiving. So much better to find in the mail box than bills, ads and junk mail!!

Fred Alton said...

Many cards were received here and all from friends whom we love and appreciate very much. The cards remind me of times spent with these friends and things we have done together in the past. We used to hang them around the doors in our house but now just place them in a large basket where we can go through them several times during the season.

Karin said...

Wow, you took me down memory lane! We used to have long strings full of cards all around the living room. Mom loved writing and receiving cards - especially to relatives overseas. Then about 15-20 years ago things slowly changed for all the reasons you mentioned. Besides that, postage was getting expensive! Others made the suggestion to give the postage money to charity rather than send cards and a new trend was begun. I haven't sent cards for about 10 years but keep in touch with e-mails, facebook, and phone all through the year. I still have a container of cards my mom and I kept - we'd often make crafts with the lovely pictures, i.e. gift tags, bookmarks, etc. Haven't got around to that this year!
Blessings for the year ahead!!

From the Kitchen said...

I love Christmas cards--both sending and receiving. I even love the ones with letters (no matter how bragging) and photos. The children love looking through them when they arrive home. I don't keep most of them but I do use them to make lists on, write special notes, etc. through the winter.

Best,
Bonnie

Stephanie V said...

I think that we all keep in touch so well with technology that a Christmas card is not the same as it used to be. I gradually cut down and now I don't send them at all. I find that a phone call to someone who might miss my card is enjoyed more.

They did help to decorate the house, though!

barbara l. hale said...

We get a lot fewer cards than we used to and more e-greetings. I think that is good, but I love hearing from people that we don't get to see often or at all. It's a nice tradition.

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Hi Ginny, Love your header... SO pretty... I LOVE sending and getting Christmas cards... It is a tradition for us...

I was afraid that we wouldn't get so many this year since many people are opting not to send cards, but we got more than we got last year... Maybe people are like us and LOVE that tradition...

Hugs,
Betsy

Unknown said...

Love this post - God's word is so wise and so TRUE! Thanks for sharing and reminding us of these truths!

photowannabe said...

I do love to get Christmas cards that have a personal message on them. Ones with just their name printed on it make me feel like why bother. I want to know about the person not just that I am on some list.
This year I am sending out New Year's cards to those who sent us Christmas cards. Now I can sit and write without the busyness of the holidays.

Annie Jeffries said...

I have been fortunate in that I have crossed very few addresses off due to death. I'm grateful for that. I love Christmas cards and the letters they might contain. Each card is a snapshot of the year now almost passed.

Ruth Hiebert said...

Your cards and the way you displayed them here are so beautiful. I don't have a very extensive card list.One thing I have done for years is that I keep all the cards I receive this Christmas and throughout the next year I pray fro the people who sent them. I will take 2 or 3 cards each day and pray for those people.It helps me to remember them all year,and I guess we all need prayer.

Anonymous said...

What do you do with the cards in January?

Greetings,
Filip

Marie said...

Those are beuatiful cards Ginny. I do send cards every year. This year I was running behind and mailed cards out about six days before Christmas.

I very much enjoy receiving cards and reading them at least a couple of times. I keep all cards, so I have quite a few from over the years. I also keep all my son's birthday cards that he is given.

I love looking back at my birthday cards from when I was a child. My favorites are from my grandma because they always had beautiful flowers or animals on the front. And she always wrote lovely words to me.

Remington said...

Beautiful cards! I got several cards this year too! I hope you had a great Christmas, my friend!

Anonymous said...

Hi Ginny, For a lot of different reasons, I only got three cards sent out this year other than e-cards or e-mail messages conveying greetings. I hope to do a lot better next year. I so love getting the pretty cards myself, so I think others do as well. I like those you have shown here. Have a wonderful day tomorrow!

S. Etole said...

I haven't been able to send cards for a couple of years but it's always a joy to receive them.

Mary Bergfeld said...

The cards you received are lovely, Ginny. You asked about substitutions. You'll find a good selection here.

http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/Articles/Wine-and-Alcohol-644/alcohol-substitutes.aspx#1

Have a great evening. Blessings...Mary

Reena said...

Lovely cards Ginny and also love your banner! We no longer send cards out ... we send a card via email. Not as personal but at least it gets out ... we would never get it done the other way!

Shug said...

I love sending them out and I love receiving them...Seems that fewer people are doing this these days! It's a lovely thing to do at the Holiday season..

Chatty Crone said...

Ginny I didn't send cards out this year, but I got a lot of nice ones - and each time I opened them I felt so lucky and so loved. sandie

Ann said...

I used to be very diligent with my card list but over the years got very lazy with it. Fewer and fewer people are sending them to me any more since they never got one back.
You got some lovely ones and a nice selection

DawnTreader said...

A lovely collections of cards! Yes, I agree, each year going through the list brings up memories and questions. There are some friends from the past with whom I don't have any other contact now than those cards at Christmas.

Terra said...

I love Christmas cards and send and receive them every year since it is a way of saying hello to folks and sharing the celebration of Jesus' birth. Your card of the snowman looking up is charming.

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