In my family, we’ve passed down ornaments through a few generations. My knowledge of my family’s history is limited and the objects relating to that past are even more restricted. Ornaments are one constant tradition that has run through my family. My father has collected ornaments from his travels to other countries and other parts of America and my mother has even created her own. We have ornaments from my grandparents passed to our family and handmade ornaments from my mother’s grandfather that remind me of a past that I never got to know. Because I never got to know my great grandfather or any of my grandparents besides my grandmother when I was young and until she died when I was eight, I’m unfamiliar with their stories but with their ornaments, I am reminded of the place they had in this country and their connection to each other. The significance and uniqueness of these objects lie within the love that keeps our family together. Another unique aspect of some ornaments that are kept on our Christmas tree is the pictures of family members framed in small hanging frames, standing as memories of a different time. My mother used to be a single mom who lived with my brothers but she now lives with my father and me and keeps them as a way to memorialize their younger selves. I also have ornaments that frame me as a little girl and some commemorating my first Christmas that remind my parents of that time when they were so excited for me to be born. We still collect ornaments with significance so that I can, hopefully, one day share with my kids and tell stories about them.

– Mary Grace Passmore

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