It's Not What's In The Box That Counts

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That broken watch…brought back a memory…

12 year old me…birthday at Grandma’s…angel food cake…those pokey happy birthday candies on top…gifts from family…

Held a box…long…flat…rectangular…guess what it is said that grandma of mine…excitement in her voice…

Wasn’t comfortable…with the guessing game…too much pressure…too many eyes…what if…birthday girl…guesses wrong…

And she did…guess wrong…a Timex watch she said hopefully…all the cool kids had one…but no…

It was…an engraved Parker pen and pencil set…and this old gal has been haunted by the opening of that box…ever since…

Not…because she was disappointed…not…because she didn’t like the pen and pencil set…but because of the disappointment she’d seen…on her grandmother’s face…

And so it is…one of us…has never…will never…again…guess what might be in the box…because it’s not what’s in the box that counts…but the love that comes with it…that matters…
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And 12 year old me…agrees…