Special Gift

Who doesn't like to open the mailbox and find something more than junkmail and bills? You can imagine my surprise this morning when I discovered a small package inside with a return address didn't belong to a family member. It was from my friend, Anne, whom I met in Hungary during the summer of 2006.

I haven't seen Anne since that English Camp experience three years ago, but thanks to the wonderful world wide web and blogging, we've been able to keep up with each other's lives and families.

A few weeks ago Anne and her husband Nate took an anniversary trip to New York City. It was so interesting and entertaining to read her travelogue of each day's visits and about their B&B in Harlem. It was evident they did their reseach beforehand so they could pack a lot into each day and make the most of their time while grandparents had the kids back home!

You can imagine my surprise today to discover that Anne thought of us on this trip and brought back a very special token for our family. (Note: I was not surprised that Anne was thoughtful -- she is extremely thoughtful, so much so that to receive a Christmas card from Anne is to receive a personal, handcrafted gift. That's just one example -- she's amazing). Anne wrote, "When we were at Ellis Island we saw a display of 5-6 pairs of children's shoes that had been worn by children that came through Ellis Island. In the gift shop there were replicas of these shoes... One of them was from Albania and I immediately thought of Ellie."

As Anne acknowledged, Ellie's immigration story is very different, nevertheless we will treasure this gift as a representation of Ellie's birth culture which will always be a part of her. I'm sure she will look at it as she grows older and while hanging it on our Christmas tree consider the unique stories of other Albanian children who came to America before her. Anne -- thanks for your gift of kindness to me today, but thanks even more for this gift for Ellie! You're the best!