I’m embarrassed to say that I never finished sending out my Christmas cards this year. So, if you usually receive a card from us, well, I offer my most humble apologies and my promise to do better next year. After all, Christmas cards are one of my favorite ways of hearing from friends and family that I may rarely (or ever) get to see.

An old childhood friend Trudy would be an excellent example. We were next door neighbors until I was fifteen and my family moved (to the country so I could get a horse!). I have some of the best memories of playing with neighborhood friends. Unfortunately, I failed to keep in contact with any of them and have found only a couple in the past few years. Trudy is one of them.

Life has been busy for the two of us and we pretty much only stay in contact through our yearly Christmas cards. And I do really look forward to them. Now, Trudy is more on the ball than I am so I usually receive her card before I’ve even sent mine out and am able to reply to what she wrote to me. The downside of only communicating once a year is that we often forget what we wrote about, or why, the year before. I saved last year’s card as I had been meaning to write about it for the past several months.

Trudy wrote (in response to what I had written the year before which was in response to what she had written the year before that 🙂 ):

I think your card last year asked me a question about Laura Ingalls Wilder?? I can’t remember, but a couple of years ago when you made that Christmas card… Reminded me of those books and you telling me to read them. I read them all. I recently read the first three books again.

Now I remember the original conversation was that Trudy had found my blog and that I had written about Laura Ingalls Wilder (I’m not sure if she found me through my own personal blog or through Beyond Little House) combined with the fact that I had sent out handmade Christmas cards that were Little House-related sparked some memories in Trudy.

I discovered the Little House books through my sixth grade elementary teacher. I can’t remember if Trudy and I were in the same sixth grade class, but I was happy to find out that I had urged her to read the Little House books and that she read and remembered them all these years later. Because, believe me, it has been many years.

Trudy, if you happen upon this…know that I appreciate your words and that I will always treasure my childhood memories with you, your little sister and our many neighborhood friends.

Little neighbor girls in the 60s doing what they did best - playing dolls.