As we sprint ever faster towards the holiday season, I listen to concerns surrounding the supply chain complications and parents’ fears of not being able to secure the newest “it” toy, electronic, or game for their child.

It has had me reflecting on holidays in my family as a child. Money was tight, and some years it was a stretch for my parents just to make ends meet.

One of my most cherished gifts came at the conclusion of a particularly challenging year for my folks. Like many young children, I longed for a pony to call my own. My real pony would come along several years later when finances were a bit better.

But at the age of 4, under the Christmas tree, I received my prized Leisha – my very own stick horse I would spend hours riding up and down the stairs and out in the pastures, letting my imagination run wild. Leisha wasn’t just any stick horse. She was one of a kind, carefully crafted of fabric and yarn and an old, wooden broomstick by the loving hands of my mother.

Forty-one years later, Leisha remains one of my most treasured gifts, perhaps even more now than she was then. As an adult, I look at her and reflect on all the thought and love and work that went into bringing her to life. She is a tangible reminder of the real greatest gift my parents ever gave me – the knowledge that the value lies not in the gift itself, but in the giving.

Today, many holidays and gifts later, it remains the thought, the love, the time that has gone into the giving that I hold dear.

For those who are feeling anxiety and pressure about what you will have for your child this holiday season, be it because of supply chain issues or finances, please accept this reminder as a gift I offer to you.

I invite you to release the stress and strain that can sometimes come along with the holidays and keep in mind that in 40 years, your child will likely not remember every gift you have worked so hard to provide. What they will remember is the time you spent with them, the love you gave them, the memories you made with them, and the important lessons you taught them.

Someone’s time and love – could there any greater gift?

Amber Kish

Orion Twp.