Charm bracelets have a long history. In the 1970s they were still a popular fashion statement.
On my twelfth birthday, my mother gave me a sterling silver chain with one charm that said Grown Up 12 in cursive.
The next charm was a Holy Bible that opened. Inside, were the Ten Commandments.
Soon after, my parents brought charms from Hawaii and Italy. Family trips to Wisconsin Dells added a deer and an Indian Chief. A Santa and a nativity scene hang out with my Lucky 13 and Sweet 16 birthday charms. Two pianos and a violin bring back memories of music lessons. A photo of my baby brother shows him wearing a pair of corduroy pants I sewed for him.
Later, I learned that some people keep to a theme, only collecting country flags, miniature 4-H medals, or favorite presidents.
Reminisce magazine featured a nostalgic look at charm bracelets they call Wrist Journals. As a writer, I like the idea that our bracelets tell stories.
When I was sixteen, a local jeweler attached a colorful metallic map of Haiti. I bought it on a mission trip to help build a church. After that, I planned to fill every link, more chapters in my life story.
Then my mom died.
I didn’t add any more charms. I had rarely worn the bracelet that had grown clunkier with each addition.
Jewelry was never my thing. But the bracelet was our thing.
Now the story of my wrist journal is part mystery. My mother is not here to remind me where the cactus with a dot of turquoise came from, or why she gave me a charm of slender skis, ski poles, and a boot when I was terrified of the slopes. There is an hourglass, its sand shifts from one side to the other in one second. Was this representative of the finite time my mother and I would have together?
The bracelet, tarnished and tired from lack of wear and care, circles the base of my nightstand.
I have lived a charmed life.
Do you own a charm bracelet?
Mom gave me one too. It is a tiny bracelet (for a little girl) with only three charms. One is my birthstone in a heart, one is a bear from Yellowstone, and one is a palm tree from Florida. She always said my name was from the meaning of “palm tree”. Unlike your bracelet that has tarnished, mine is bright silver as if time stood still. I never added to my bracelet either as I felt she was going to do that with me. I had waited (as I was only 9 when she left us) for her to come back. Maybe that’s why mine looks new. Maybe I have always waited for her to come back.
What you wrote is beautiful! How can we be so close and yet never talked about our bracelets? Thank you for sharing your thoughts on our mother. I want to see your bracelet in person the next time we meet. Mom lives on in our memories and special items we will cherish for life. ❤️
Ahem…may I join in? Mom also gave me a charm bracelet. It holds mostly charms from states that I or a family member visited. BUT, the most valuable and special are the two of my sisters. One is about 3 and the other 11 years of age. I like your idea of displaying it somehow; that way the grand kiddos can enjoy it too!
We all have bracelets! Who knew? And they are as different as the three of us. Displaying the bracelet can bring joy to those who won’t ever get a chance to meet our mother.