Nothing Is Too Good
January 28, 2010 by Marci
photo from marthastewart.com
There is a story my dad used to tell about one of his aunts. In the 1940’s in the rural area where they lived, it was a luxury to have nice china and linens. Aunt Freida was one of the blessed ones. She had a china cabinet full of china and glassware. She had drawers of nice linens. All of this just waiting for that special occasion to use them. Years went by and those precious treasures stayed packed away. Just waiting.
One spring day, a midwestern thunderstorm spawned a tornado that destroyed Aunt Freida’s family farmhouse. The family was blessed. Their lives were spared. But, their home and most of their belongings were gone. The china, glassware and linens never saw that long awaited special occasion.
My dad told that Aunt Freida was so happy that her family was saved during the tornado that from that day on “nothing was too good for Aunt Freida”. She bought new china and glassware and linens, but this time she used them everyday! To her, each day was now a special occasion.
The lesson I learned from that family story is that each day is a gift. A special occasion worth celebrating, worth breaking out the good china for. If your own family isn’t worth the good stuff, who is? So, go ahead. Set the table. Use the good stuff. Even if it’s for mac n cheese. Light the candles in that silver candle holder you got as a wedding gift, but have never used. Let your family know how special they are and that nothing is too good for them.
Do you do anything to make your family feel special? Give us some ideas!
Comments (2)
When my Mom passed away I received her China set, which promptly was stored, as I had no shelves to display them. I brought them out for Thanksgiving that year and was the only one who realized their value. Back they went into storage, until I realized that if I could remember my Mom through these dishes every time I used them, I might as well pack up our everyday dishes and use them instead. This is what I did for a number of years, getting the satisfaction of remembering this special lady myself. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for that story! This lesson often gets lost in the shuffle of everyday life, but its something we should think about every day. My grandmother’s china is currently sitting in a box out in my garage where it’s been sitting for the last ten years…I’m going to get it out tonight.