Winter is a season of gifts and giving for many cultures and several religious faiths. People of various ages and backgrounds, connected with our Gorge communities, have generously written here about some of the most meaningful gifts they’ve received…or given. Remembering special gifts can be very uplifting, especially as we continue to deal with the pandemic and other serious concerns in our world. Our thanks to each contributor, whose quotes will appear this month and next.
“The best gifts I have ever received are my children and the love of my wife, Lynda.” — Joe Sacamano, Mosier (84)
“When I was a child, my mother gifted me a lockable diary so I could write my innermost important 10 year old thoughts. And almost daily since then, I journal as a way to learn more about myself.” — Trish Leighton, Hood River (56)
“The best gift that I ever received was a full-ride scholarship that paid for my undergraduate degree and my first year of medical school. I was 18 when I received this gift and the donor, Kenneth Ford, was 86. Me, a first-generation Mexican American woman, and he, an 86-year-old male — we were separated by gender, race, and generation. So the fact that this person that seemed so different from me, and with whom I shared no history, believed in me and saw my potential to succeed is by far the best gift that I have received and has left a mark on me forever.” — Eva Gálvez, Portland (45)
“I had the privilege of living in a four-generation home for 3 ½ years. We had a lot of exchange of ideas and compromising. Gifts I received that stand out to me: Knowledge, trust, and to be on time; my transformations through Christ, love, compassion and patience. I am still learning: Gratitude, manners, politeness and compassion, but most of all that Elders have a lot of wisdom. Thank you for allowing me to express my gratitude.” — Tommy Flores, The Dalles (23); grandmother is Josie Castaneda, The Dalles (76)
“A gift I gave to my mother Betty Holston at age 86, as she neared her death, was forgiveness. As she lay in her bed I combed her hair, massaged cream onto her face, and held her hand in peaceful quiet moments during those last months before she left this earth.” — Shannon Perry, Hood River (63)
“So many gifts. So much nurturing in the art of giving. For me these days — the gifts of people in my life who carry the dreams for a better common good and try to bring them into reality.” — John Boonstra, Hood River (72)
“A gift I gave to my mamá Lupe, of 82 years old, before she passed away was spending two weeks with her in Mexico, stands out to me because all she ever wanted was to spend time with us.” — Silvia Maciel, Hood River (46)
“One of the best gifts I ever received was not wrapped in a box nor tied with a ribbon. It was a quote, sometimes attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt, passed on to me from a now forgotten friend. ‘Yesterday’s history, tomorrow’s a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why they call it The Present.’ It has served me well in times of stress, and is a good reminder to ‘Be Here Now.’” — Peggy Dills Kelter, HR (65)
“The birth of my children! And the joys — and sometimes heartache — that goes along with it.” — Claire, Hood River (70)
“One of the best gifts I ever received was from my abuela, Carmen Fernandez, before she passed away at 77. She gave me the gift of striving to see everyone’s whole self, in all their kindness and love, no matter our disagreements.” — Nik Portela, The Dalles (33)
“One of the best gifts I ever received was listening to my grandma telling me stories about her life. My grandma was born in 1922 and died at age 95.” — Molly Fauth, Hood River (46)
“One of the best gifts I have ever received, receive, or will receive is friendship from those I’ve been lucky enough to cross paths with in this glorious world. Thank you all.” — Chuck Gehling, Hood River (71)
“One of the best gifts I ever received was, as a child, sitting cozily next to my father as he read to me. Favorites were the poetry of Eugene Field and Robert Louis Stevenson, or fairy tales and myths from the orange Childcraft book set. Here was the gift of the cadence of language, the gifts of comfort, love, and attention from a parent, and a sense of tradition and ancestry as my father shared favorites from his own childhood.” — Daera Dobbs, Hood River (66)
“One of my best gifts I ever received was a pink gem ring with delicate gold filigree on my 50th birthday while we were living in Iran. My husband secretly arranged for my daughter to give it to me because he knew he was going to be hospitalized in Germany at that time.” — Ruth Davidson, Boring (90)
“One of the best gifts I ever received was from my father, and happened many years after he died. In a moment of grace I realized I am in no position to judge him (or anyone) and that my love for him is unconditional, and so was able to easily and gratefully lay down all the old grievances against him I’d been carrying.” — Bruce Ruttenburg, Hood River (65)
“A gift I gave to my sister in 2019 when she was 58 stands out to me because it was the last project that my mother knit, and my sister was totally surprised and overwhelmed with gratitude. One of the best gifts I’ve ever received is the opportunity to explore and enjoy our natural world and share it with friends and family.” — Barbara Peterson, Parkdale (64)
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