[Beauty28]

Congratulations

 

[mylittletibbies]

Good Afternoon Everyone, & Thank you for letting me join the Seniors Discount Club.
I’m new here.

My fondest memory of Christmas was as a young girl my Pop always promised me that one day he would buy me a pony or a horse as my friends had horses they rode around the streets & paddocks frequently back when I was young & very nieve.

Each Christmas starting from around three years of age I put out carrots on a plate & water in a large bucket for my horse if Santa was going to grant my wish. Santa was not forgotten either as he was left Christmas fruit cake & a beer.

This promise from my Pop went on & on until I reached the age of a young teenage girl where I was more than ready to receive my horse from Santa & ride like the wind with my friends on their horses.

Every year my Pop stated… “ Go see if Santa left you your pony or horse at the old iron front gates… so off I went every year to see… only to be told each time, see that horse poo on the concrete driveway & I said yes… well Santa keeps leaving your pony or horse but for some reason he keeps getting away”! & to think I fell for this year after year. Thus never ever getting my childhood dream Christmas present.


I never forgave him when I was old enough to realise he was joking & just pulling my leg all those years….
“ Very Cruel”!

Definitely very cruel, some people have a warped idea of what is funny.

 

[Jo Piper3]

Oh my, members!

You made this competition SO DIFFICULT! We loved every story. Those that made us laugh and those that made us cry. You all really have some stories to tell and we are honoured that you choose to tell them here!

After much deliberation among the SDC Team, this months Christmas memory competition is...

Member @Rosita1950

If you'd like to read Member @Rosita1950's submission you can do so by clicking here, or by reading it below:

'My Mum was deep into her Alzheimers journey. She was reduced to just one word.. Tan, Tan, Tan... although we were not sure what she meant by it. On Christmas Eve, we brought her home for the night from the Nursing home. We all sat around the Christmas tree by candlelight singing Christmas carols. Suddenly, Mum started to sing Away in a Manger, one of her favourite carols. She sang the whole song!! Every word!! We were amazed. It was our Christmas miracle. Afterwards she again retreated back to her single word. She passed away 6 months later, but we always hold that memory close to our hearts.'

CONGRATULATIONS! We have been in touch about your $100 voucher which we hope helps you out even if it's just a little bit this year.

Thank you all so much for entering and if you didn't win last month's competition, don't worry! You can enter this month's competition here! But be quick, because we are closing entries by December 21 so our winner can get their $100 voucher before Christmas!

Good luck!

Glad you have such a special, lasting memory of your Mum. What a beautiful Christmas you must have had. Take care and congratulations!

 

[Clancieblue]

A wonderful memory for you to have Rosita.
Music is a powerful tool, when caring for someone with Alzheimer's or old age dementia, it seems like music is one of the last things we lose. I have seen the magic of it many times in aged care. I am glad you got to share that moment with your mother.
Have a joyous Christmas.

 

[Sheriella]

Congratulations. What a lovely story and a wonderful cherished memory to keep.

 

[midgemills]

When I worked in aged care we had an almost non verbal dementia resident who would join in at singalongs and sing most of the songs word perfect. Music is one of the last abilities that some people are able to hang on to before they pass away.

 

[saundy]

Congratulations, what a wonderful memory you have of your mum, hold onto that for memory for the rest of your life. Memory's like that are very precious.

 

[marrels]

My favourite Christmas memory is of a Christmas I spent in Rome, Italy. I was travelling to Italy on a language teaching scholarship and arrived in Rome Christmas Eve morning. I had already found an Italian speaking Church to attend on Christmas Day and so headed off to Trastevere, where I instantly felt at home with a wonderfully warm group of local people. I was soon invited to Christmas lunch by some lovely people, so got to experience a home Christmas with new friends. Following that, one of the ladies in the group offered to show me some attractions I hadn’t seen and then offered to take me with her as she drove the food delivery van for the Salvos that night. I spent the most amazing night delivering Christmas dinner to street people, gypsies and refugees all over Rome - pasta entrée with meat and vegetable sides and bread roll and fruit, complete with cutlery! Some meals were delivered to the poor and hungry, just a stone’s throw from all the wealth of the Vatican. I was hugged by so many people that night, that my white shirt will never be white again, but I went back to my hotel late - tired and very happy, after an incredible experience, which probably other tourists would never have. So privileged to have been able to share some of the joy and real meaning of Christmas! Etched forever in my memory!

My favourite Christmas memory is of a Christmas I spent in Rome, Italy. I was travelling to Italy on a language teaching scholarship and arrived in Rome Christmas Eve morning. I had already found an Italian speaking Church to attend on Christmas Day and so headed off to Trastevere, where I instantly felt at home with a wonderfully warm group of local people. I was soon invited to Christmas lunch by some lovely people, so got to experience a home Christmas with new friends. Following that, one of the ladies in the group offered to show me some attractions I hadn’t seen and then offered to take me with her as she drove the food delivery van for the Salvos that night. I spent the most amazing night delivering Christmas dinner to street people, gypsies and refugees all over Rome - pasta entrée with meat and vegetable sides and bread roll and fruit, complete with cutlery! Some meals were delivered to the poor and hungry, just a stone’s throw from all the wealth of the Vatican. I was hugged by so many people that night, that my white shirt will never be white again, but I went back to my hotel late - tired and very happy, after an incredible experience, which probably other tourists would never have. So privileged to have been able to share some of the joy and real meaning of Christmas! Etched forever in my memory!

What a beautiful inspiring story. To do this for humanity and in such a beautiful city. Merry Christmas.

 

[RFG]

I have many but what sticks in my mind is dad was a prominent member of a local footy club. They held a huge xmas party every year at the local footy field where all members kids up to age 13 received a present "from santa". It was an all day affair but after each xmas party dad would be in charge of gathering all the left over gifts and the following day mum, dad & us seven kids would drive a long distance and head off to an orphanage. We had the pleasure of handing the excess gifts to the children who were less fortunate plus boxes of fruit for them and we would spend hours with them. This was back in the fifties and sixtys and the gifts were exceptionally good ones. We all knew that when you were aged thirteen you always received a watch..that was huge for us back then and I treasure those memories and us kids always enjoyed our times at the orphanage.

 

[Gsr]

My grandma used to put coins in her puddings as well. So did my mum when we were little kids, before decimal currency came in, and the coins were not suitable to use. My all time favourite Christmas food is my mums pudding recipe, cooked in a cloth. It is not a rich pudding, but is so yummy. Cooking it in a cloth puts a nice skin on it. I still cook it every year, as soon as it starts to cook in the saucepan the smell takes me back to helping mum with cooking them. It has a smell all of its own when cooking, a smell I will never forget as always associated with my mum.

 

[Veggiepatch]

From my daughter's birth, I was unable to nurse her to sleep, yet she would readily sleep with no problem, whether in her bassinet or cot, or simply on a blanket on the floor.

As she grew older, even brushing against her when walking down the hall was too much, and hugs and cuddles were definitely "out of bounds".

A diagnosis of autism helped us to understand her difficulties with touch, especially with people.

So you can only imagine the shock I received on Christmas Day when my then 13 year old daughter walked up to me and gave me a huge hug.

As I stood there with my daughter hugging me for the first time, tears welled in my eyes.

Then she said, "I know you like hugs, although I don't why, so this is my Christmas present for you".
Tears ran down my cheeks as we hugged for several mintues.

To this day, I still get tingles down my spine, and yes, sometimes a few emotional tears escape, when I think about that moment, or when I tell anyone my story.

I'm still amazed by her thoughtfulness in giving me something she knew I would love, even if she didn't understand why, and despite how incredibly difficult that would have been for her to give.

This was, and remains, the most precious gift I have ever received, and a Christmas I will never forget, and as I write this, I have the tears and tingles to prove it.

That is one helluva beautiful story. Thank you for sharing!

 

[Reet]

My Nanny always made Plum Pudding with Sixpences and Threepences. I am now 73 and I lost my Nanny a while ago but I still have her set of pudding Sixpences and Threepences. Miss her heaps.

But when it was a common thing to put sixpences and threepences in the christmas pudding those coins were genuinely made from silver and would not contaminate the mixture.

 

[magpie1]

My Nanny always made Plum Pudding with Sixpences and Threepences. I am now 73 and I lost my Nanny a while ago but I still have her set of pudding Sixpences and Threepences. Miss her heaps.

My mum did the same with the Threepences and Sixpences and I loved cream as well as a young child....but Mum would always tape a Two Shilling coin on the outside bottom of the CLEAR bowls that she served the 'pud' in......so when you got to the bottom and thought that you had got all of the small coins, there amongst the final pieces of pudding and cream was this two shilling piece and so you scraped like billyO to get this coin, only to realise that you had been tricked.....joke was only good for one year, but I remember it really got me going at the time. And tucked away somewhere is still all of those coins that she used. Love you Mum and miss you. XO.

 

[magpie1]

That is one helluva beautiful story. Thank you for sharing!

That really is a very special ,'TOUCHING' Christmas story......Merry Christmas barbaranne.

 

[magpie1]

I remember the day before being at Greens Milkbar and having an ear ache, then the next morning, my grandmother looking at me and saying loud Omg let me see your neck . Then I wasn't allowed to walk around, she had told me if I did I wouldn't be able to have babies, well I proved her wrong

You sure did, with 13 children......I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you. Champion MUM.

 

[magpie1]

Me toodon’t worry she’ll be there in spirityou’ll feel her presence

She will ALWAYS be with you in Spirit.....not just at Christmas. Have a Happy one, both of you.

 

[magpie1]

Not a good memory at the time, but hilarious in hindsight.

My next door neighbour, great mate for over 55 years and former No. 6 world pro surfer got a nice shiny bike for Christmas when he was eight.

He disappeared for about 15 minutes when the whole street came running out to the blood-curdling screams of a little kid.

His maiden voyage was down a 200 metre street with a moderate incline, towards Riverwood Public School, which we both attended. A screeching Gary, chunks of flesh hanging off and a bike with the front wheel folded underneath the frame, strolls forlornly home.

Poor fella didn't know where the brakes were and subsequently ran into the side of a parked car at the bottom of the hill. OUCH!!

My older brother, only 'sibling' has told me often that when he got his first bike for Christmas, that he took it out to the front of the house and got ready to set off down the footpath, started peddling and the neighbors dog ran out in front of him, he hit it of course and buckled his front wheel....bike stuffed after riding about 10 feet.
I still can't stop laughing every time that I think about this.

 

[magpie1]

My best Xmas day was in 1973 I was 10 yrs old my mum and dad had separated and mum had no money, I know she would not be able to buy me and my 2 sisters anything for Xmas but when Xmas morning roll around there was presents under the small tree, we were so happy. I found out later that mum had been skipping meals for months to save money to give us a little happiness on Xmas day, to this day I've never let on that I had know but my mum was and still is the best and at 83 yrs old she still try's to give us something even though she can't afford it I love her for that.

your Mum really is a special lady.....Merry Christmas to all of you and especially your Mother.

 

[magpie1]

Once upon a time when I was a wee child in the 1900s; I was waiting for Santa. It was the year I was going to finally meet Saint Nick. So I stayed up all night to my parents saying to me that it was Christmas Eve not Christmas so I tired to say up again but was so tired I fell asleep and as I woke finally on that real Christmas day with cookie crumbs all over me, and cotton balls beard tickling my nose from the side of the half drunk glass of milk. As I was basically covered in the food from Santa I was running around telling everyone I was Santas food and he had to come back for me. I think I was about 6-7 years old. And for some reason that Christmas has stayed with me all these years. I got my whole family involved in a family backyard cricket match that year...

Sadly I haven't had to time to celebrate Christmas for the past two years as it's getting to hard for me to visit the family house for Christmas and I'm am over everyone saying I'm dying from this blood and bone cancer. And how I see it is that we all die one day in the end so doesn't matter however you leave these plains. Just remember to enjoy every day with meaning because you never know when it's your last Christmas.
So many blessings from me to you and your families for a beautiful Christmas 2023

And a very Happy and Safe Christmas 2023 to you hol0g......Blessings to you and your Family.

 

[magpie1]

My last Christmas with my son 36, it's gut wrenching and still a treasured memory, he was in pain but still laughing and joking, even though bowel cancer was taking him, he wanted everyone to be happy, he loved our Xmas family breakfast, he passed in January 2022

So sorry for your loss Takart.....may you and your family have a Happy and safe Christmas 2023.