Personalized

Right after Christmas, I bought a black and white marble composition book. I like to write in it sometimes, when I can’t think on a keyboard, or when I just feel like seeing the black ink marching across pale blue lines on crisp white paper. A white page ruled in faint blue with a faint red margin is so beautiful that I almost hate to spoil it. Almost.

Another good reason to write by hand every so often is that practice makes perfect, or at least better. My handwriting is not so good, but I can write a few neat lines if I do it carefully; and I’m noticing that my pen moves more smoothly now that I’ve been practicing. I had to write a handwritten thank-you note today, and it was actually readable and reasonably nice to look at when I finished.

In most circumstances, I think that email is just fine for thank-you notes. A few sincere words of gratitude are just as good on screen as they are on paper. But when a person you haven’t seen for ten years sends you--in the mail!-- a lovely and thoughtful gift for no reason other than that it made her think of you, then only a handwritten note will do. Luckily my friend will be able to read it.

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What was the gift? Well, I’m glad you asked, non-existent reader. It was a tiny gold Carrie Bradshaw-style personalized necklace; my name (Claire) in shiny gold script much neater than my own handwriting, even at its best. I was delighted. I don’t wear much jewelry--a pair of platinum and diamond hoops (much smaller and less flashy than that sounds), a Celtic cross or a Miraculous Medal, my wedding band and engagement ring, another diamond ring, and a few beaded bracelets here and there. Well, that sounds like a lot, but it’s not. Most of my jewelry is silver or platinum or white gold. Yellow gold is a nice change.

But it’s the name that makes it special. I was a little girl in the 1970s, when personalized jewelry and accessories were all the rage. And if you were a Jennifer or a Lisa or a Michelle or a Tracy, then you were in luck. Claire is a very popular name now, but it wasn’t then. I never knew anyone my own age named Claire. And so I never did get a dog tag necklace or a tiny license plate or a keychain with my name on it, until now. A little gold necklace, and a childhood dream fulfilled. Thank you, friend.