05/22/2026
When I first married, my husband's Nanny gave me a piece of advice. "Use your good things, don't save them. Enjoy them every day." Here's the story behind that advice.
When Edgar and Stella were a young family, they were sharecroppers in South Texas. Stella had neatly packed away the handmade linens and spreads. She placed them in the trunk along with those things she was saving for their own home. Then, when their third child (my mother-in-law) was around two or so, their rented house burnt to the ground and they were left with nothing but . . .*
The neighbors rallied, got together what would be necessary for them to set up housekeeping. Stella made a careful list on tablet paper of who had given them what. She never forgot the generosity of their neighbors and she never forgot to enjoy what she had and to not hide it away.
