This season has become a yearly marker of time. Maybe it’s because we take more pictures around Christmas. Or perhaps it’s the memories as we place handmade ornaments on trees and hang sentimental decorations on the wall. Or as the empty spaces at the table grow.
As I decorated the tree this year, I found photo ornaments of the boys as toddlers. Handmade ornaments with special messages and dates made me smile. A family picture with my grandma in it brought tears to my eyes. And the clear plastic balls with my sons’ hospital bands and baby hats warmed my heart. Markers of joy. Markers of loss. Markers of time.