Some people think that cards are a pointless part of a gift. That they just end up in the garbage without a second thought. But I have always viewed greeting cards in a different light. I love them, I cherish them, and I have kept every single one I've ever received since I was 8 years old, every single one my husband received since we've been together, and every single one of my children's since the day they were born.
That is a lot of cards.
But, we are getting ready to move and I had to clear some of these collections out. Before I could even think of parting with any of them I had to read them ALL again and in doing so I discovered a few things that I wanted to share with you.
1. We have received cards for everything. Every possible occasion you could think of, I have cards for it: birthday, Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's Day, baby shower, new baby, christening, thinking of you, wedding, new home, Easter, get well soon, sympathy, and so many others including one given to me when I sliced my finger on a can of baby formula.
2. The hand written messages from so many people made me realize that I'm loved, I'm liked, I'm appreciated, and I'm thought of. Reading these messages really lifted my spirits and were probably even more meaningful read years later than they were at the time I received them. I think it's sad that most people today do not take the time to hand write a message to anyone.
3. I was reminded of different chapters in my life from the barely understandable teenage lingo we used to use, to the many parents and co-workers who appreciated my work as an Early Childhood Educator and as a party entertainer, and the love expressed to me by my family, husband and children.
4. I enjoyed looking back on the cards from my children because it shows the progression of their writing abilities from year to year.
5. Looking at cards from my childhood was like a blast from the past because some of them were very time specific such as one shaped like a cassette tape and another with a girl talking on a phone with a spiral cord. Also seeing the names of friends I haven't seen in over 20 years brought back a lot of childhood memories.
6. It was interesting to see how many friends had given me a card over the years. There were so many, but only a few friends were around long enough to give me many, many cards.
7. My grandmother gave me the exact same card on two separate years that said "To My Grandmother" (I'm sure she meant grand daughter)
8. My other grandmother passed away in 1998. It was so nice to see my name in her handwriting again. (These ones did not make it to the garbage pile)
9. A friend wrote inside my son's first birthday card that he would never see the card, but I proved her wrong because he did see it. (Albeit 8 years later).
10. I found a Rexall gift card from 2003, a Shoppers Drug Mart gift card from 2005, an Old Navy gift card from 2006, and a cheque from 2007.
I ended up keeping quite a few cards because I might like to read those messages again some day. I will take many to work for the daycare children to reuse and the rest did make it to the garbage. It was a difficult thing for me to do but it was time to declutter my greeting card hoarding.
The moral of this post is to prove that greeting cards do have a purpose, some times far greater than even the gift itself. I don't remember what gifts accompanied any of the cards I received (except for the baby shower cards as someone wrote them down inside)but I do remember the kind words of each person's personal message to me and my family. If you have ever given me a card please know that I have always cherished it.
