The popcorn bursts with a fury and fills the kitchen with its appealing aroma. Cranberries, scarlet red, wait to be strung in a pattern with their white, fluffy counterparts. Children in excited anticipation make repeated requests: “Can we decorate the tree?”

        Little hands help string the popcorn and cranberries; two to one, respectively. Over and over, hands are busy until something nostalgic is created. Lengths of red and white are knotted together to make a festive garland. To the children its a Christmas tree decoration they’re making. To me, its memories.

        Memories that will carry on in the lives of my children’s children. Memories that are a continuation of the ones my own mother created for us when we were young. Now I absorb them from a mother’s point of view. Magic that is fleeting, illuminates little faces that look with wonder as the garland they helped create is hung upon the tree. How beautiful it is that something so incredibly simple, like popcorn and cranberries, can generate something so meaningful: a heart full of lasting memories.