Reworked and slightly worns
We’re (as a family) standing on the starting line, for the great holiday marathon. All the usual worries, doubts, predictions in a big sack, with a calendar to keep us on course. Fits right in to that recurring nightmare.
Before the more virtuous among you go all golden and suggest how we could do our part to end world hunger and child labour, let’s be fair; we’re not going to stray far from tradition, and that requires making decisions on how our inner circle will be gifted. We’ve eliminated the mathematical problem of a round robin “draw someone else’s name from the hat” by enrolling with an online site. All participants have received an email or three, proclaiming that we are an equal opportunity clique.
Since we (our family circle) are all “adult”, the choice comes down to practicality. No more Lego barrels, unfortunately. On top of the possibility tree: clothing. I can foresee a couple of weeks of people going through the laundry, trying to size up the others. If the tags are too worn, there’s a measuring tape around here, somewhere. Just so we all know.
Times must have been tougher, back in the last century. Less access to “store boughts”. Dibs on flour sacks (bread was a dietary staple, so the Robin Hood logo figured clearly in the local sewing circles) to provide enough cotton for the tailors in the house. Hand-me-downs that were reworked… large families and the corollary of a tight budget. My kids (and I) have missed out on the charms of slightly worns.
