Getting carded

My family and friends are about to get carded. Supplies at the ready, it is time for me to send my Christmas cards. I think that I have sent Christmas cards every year since I moved out of my parents house, which was over 25 years ago. I enjoy picking just the right card with a meaningful sentiment. (Hi, my name is Barbara, and I am a card-a-holic.) A couple of times I made my own cards, but holey-moley, that is time consuming!

The ritual of writing out personalized greetings to everyone is one I enjoy. Some years I include a photo--I will be this year--and some years I don't. Sometimes I have to find just the right pen or stamp or sticker to complement the card. This year I made my own labels, laboring over the color and font to jazz them up.

Whatever the details, I always think about the person or family I am sending the card to and what they mean in my life. Lots are family members (I love being from a big family), some are new friends, but most have been in my life for a long time. Each represents a different chapter or place in my life and the links that have remained over the years are important to me.

Even if Christmas is the only time we are in touch, for me there is something special in that exchange of cards which says, "You are important to me, even if we haven't seen in each other in years. Your mark on my life is permanent and I appreciate you." I love getting the mail during the holidays because there is the chance that I might have received Christmas cards. When I do, I open each one with anticipation, relishing the messages, photos and newsletters inside. I typically display the cards I receive in some fashion and it is with reluctance that I put them away at the end of the holiday season.

Ladies and gentlemen, let the carding begin!