A Pandora for Christmas
Value is a thing that everyone wants, but not something that everyone thinks of as the same. Some think of objects being worth value, and others seeing the valuable moments. We all associate things differently, but how do most people think of value? I personally think of objects being worth money, but I still think of the valuable moments as relatively important. What if everyone thought that valuable meant things having a price, would those special moments be lost?

I spin the charms one by one until they are all facing the same way. Then I stare at it with a grin on my face. I got my Pandora Bracelet for Christmas about a year ago. Altogether, I have eight charms that I’ve gathered over time. My Pandora is very valuable and expensive. With each charm weighing in at an average of about forty dollars a piece, not to mention the cost of the bracelet (about thirty-five dollars), my Pandora is worth roughly about three-hundred sixty-five dollars. That is a hefty price, and definitely not a necessity in times like these.

I get up and look at the clock, then lay back down. Too early, I thought. I struggle to drift back into sleep, so I just wait. I try to pass the time by reading and watching television. A little while later, it was reasonably late enough to go downstairs. The moment I turn the corner into the living room, my face lights up. The fountain of presents under the tree was unfathomable, and I quickly walk into the room to get a better view of the gifts. I’m the first one up, so I rush over to my overflowing stocking on the floor. I take out and examine every single object, then carefully stack them up in a neat pile on the floor. By the time I’m through with that, everyone is awake with anxious expressions on there faces. I cannot wait to live my soon-remembered memories.

I expected to get my Pandora bracelet because I went with my mom to get my wrist measured for it. I was also present when she picked out my first charm. It was a sterling silver Christmas tree with a gold star on top. I admired the star, knowing how pricey it could be if it had gold on it. It was worth sixty dollars, and it was not only my first, but also my most expensive charm by far.
Other charms of mine are the pink flower, the angel, and a glass charm. Since there are so many, I’m only going to describe the one that I most recently bought. So the glass charm is the my newest charm, and it is definitely the least expensive charm. I got it at the flea market for a mere three dollars. It’s obviously not a brand name, otherwise it would be much more expensive. But it is very special to me anyways. It is aqua with lime green stripes, and it’s a great addition to my bracelet.

Once my parents have their coffee and everyone is finished checking out their stockings, it’s time for the best part: PRESENTS!! My sisters Alyssa and Lyndsey and I each grab a present. We open them one at a time, and show our new possessions to everyone. My dad goes around with a trash bag and picks up all the wrapping paper as we start to open the next round of gifts. Then the process goes on until all gifts are open. Once everything is opened, we all put our opened gifts in neat piles next to the other pile of presents that were in our stockings.

The next group of charms are the dolphin, the snowman, the Gingerbread man, and the charm with lots of hearts. Since there are so many charms to explain, I will only describe two of the four. The dolphin was a gift on my birthday from my grandmother. I also expected to receive this for my birthday because she was present when my mom and I got my bracelet. She told me to pick out a charm, and she would put it away for my birthday. I was thrilled! So I picked out the dolphin, and looked forward to when my birthday would roll along.
The snowman was given to me by my old neighbors, whom I’m still very close too, Bill, Kim, and Billy. I didn’t choose the charm, but I still knew that they were getting me one. I was ecstatic when I saw that a little silver snowman was in my palm. And whenever I see the charm, I think of my old house and neighbors, so I will always remember them.

As an ongoing tradition at my house around Christmas time, we always eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast. I really enjoy this part because I can pass on the tradition, and always remember Christmas with my family. I remember the smell, and the taste, and those are just things that I refuse to forget.
As the cinnamon rolls are baking in the oven, my sisters and I retire to our rooms with our gifts. We find a place for everything to go, and are just so relieved that Christmas was finally here. As the timer goes off, indicating that the cinnamon rolls are ready, everyone gathers around and eats them happily, thinking that this is the best Christmas ever.

I will never forget those precious Christmas moments or my costly Pandora Bracelet. The Christmas mornings are priceless, and full of memories. But the bracelet is beautiful and lavish. They are both very different, but they also can have multiple similarities. They are both valuable to me, and are a part of my life. How can one truly decide if a moment is more important than an item? These moments that we treasure cannot be bought no matter how much money we have. We can buy expensive objects, but not prized moments. As you sit to ponder the importance of each materialistic item or valuable moment in your life, you are able to decipher between what has value and what doesn’t.