Happy Holidays to each and every one of you!
Since my spouse died nearly ten years ago, I've been the one in the family to host gatherings and carry on some of the traditions, particularly that of having stockings at my house for Santa to fill. This will also be my third Christmas as Sarah. One of the problems I've faced each year was how to deal with two stockings, one with my late wife's name and one with my dead name. Neither of them inspired much holiday spirit over the last couple of years, but I felt I just couldn't toss them out.
The answers were obvious, but I was slow to see them and needed just a little help. Step one was buying a new stocking for me and using glue and purple glitter to put "Sarah" on the top. Step two was where I got the help from my daughter. One granddaughter was named after my wife and her brother has recently started using his middle name, which is my dead name. They get the heirloom stockings, I have my own at last and I'm only left with one problem. Since I am the one who helps Santa fill the stockings, I just need someone to surprise me by putting something in my new one.
I'll work on that.
