Quote:
With each passing year, you accumulate more stuff. Your new holiday gifts have been put out, but now is the perfect time to make some extra space and purge your old belongings. Donation centers are bustling but there’s never a bad time to give to the needy. Going through your belongings, you may find any number of things. Something you thought was lost? Or just a bad case of nostalgia? Now is a good time to reflect on what is important to you—and maybe actually find some things you can part with.
Siobhan had never considered herself a hoarder. She was certainly a collector, but hoarders were people who could barely move around their house because of how much stuff they had. At best, she was an organized hoarder. Everything had a nice plastic box stacked neatly in her closets, labeled and cared for, and rarely did she ever find herself having to fuss with them. Surely there was nothing wrong with that?
Still, it was the end of the holidays and the perfect time to dig through each box and give back to her community. She had years worth of memorable gifts in there, ones that she was certain would delight someone out there in this city, and it was high time that she rediscovered them. Getting each box opened and sorted would be a challenge, but being able to drive the gathered donations up and give them away would make it all worth the effort.
She started with the smallest containers at the top and, slowly, worked her way into the larger, bulkier ones at the bottom. So far, all she'd found were silly knick-knacks and troves of forgotten beads from friendship bracelet kits. It was beyond her as to why her younger self hadn't kept the bracelet maker with the beads, but there wasn't time for psychoanalysis. She pulled the tops off the big containers and started pulling things out.
"Whoa, now hold on..." She muttered, a grin slowly forming on her face. She'd felt something soft, something familiar. Could it be?
She dug down again and, gently, tugged a ragdoll out from underneath the clutter. It was! Her favorite doll from when she was a child! She'd been inside this box all this time and she barely looked a day older! Siobhan laughed and hugged the doll tightly.
"Stacy! That's where you've been hiding!" She cheered, giving the doll a pat on the head. "I'm so glad I found you! ... Gosh, nothing about you has changed. No dirt, no wear. Still as beautiful as the day I got you."
Ah, that Christmas had been a nice one, hadn't it? Sio looked toward the window as she remembered the twinkling lights of her grandmother's house on that day twelve years ago. The way her grandmother's shawl had smelled, the laughter, the gifts under the tree... It made her miss the sweet old woman. She'd made this doll by hand from old clothes and filled her with fluff and dried lavender. Did that scent last through the years?
Sio raised the head of the doll to her nose and smiled. Subtle, but still enough to pick up on. It filled her mind with memories of her grandmother's garden, espescially how it was in spring after it rained. They used to have tea parties out there, summer picnics in the shade, and harvest plants in the fall... It almost made her wish she were a child again.
"... I miss you, granny." She whispered, clutching the doll again. "The days we spent together were always so wonderful, even on the days with fog and rain. You knew how to make me smile and help me see the good things in life. ... I don't know how I can ever thank you."
She sighed, her eyes glancing fondly down to the doll's smiling face, and looked toward her bedroom door. ... Harlow was a little too old for a doll like this, wasn't she? Seven seemed like a bit of a borderline, but Sio couldn't help but feel strange keeping it for herself. She fidgeted, twisted her lips, and shook her head.
"No, I'll keep you." She decided, nodding firmly. "You were a very special gift and I could never part with you. Maybe one day I'll have a child of my own that I can give you to, but for now, I would rather you be safe here with me."
She stood and placed the doll on her bedside table where she could look up and see her, before returning to the boxes. However, her mind still lingered upon her grandmother and how lovingly she must have made that doll. Maybe this was something Sio could learn to do herself? She was already good with her hands from knitting and it could be a way to earn money and honor her grandmother's legacy. ... She'd look up tutorials online later tonight after she'd sorted through the rest of these memories and pick up the material tomorrow. With any luck, she'd have a few friends to keep Stacy company before the end of next year!
Word Count: 753