G'day. Last week I went with a friend into the city of Melbourne. It's our capital city here in the state of Victoria where I live and every year one of the largest retailers, Myers, have their Christmas window display on. I haven't seen the display now for many years, but when I was a child, my mother would take me in by train so that we could see this beautiful sight. It was a tradition that my mother stuck to and we continued to go up until the time that she got too sick to go anymore. We would always take the train, even when I had my car license, she didn't like to break the tradition and plus the fact that she really did like the train trip as I also did. We would have lunch in the city and make a real day of it. When I married and had children of my own, in we would all go, year after year. But, sadly time marched on, my mother who was a heavy smoker all her life came down with cancer and passed away 32 years ago. I continued the tradition and would take my two children to see the display, by train of course. But as happens, kids grow up, gazing in Christmas windows is replaced by boyfriends and girlfriends and other exciting things to do, though they would still humour me and continue to come for many years, even when they were adults themselves. Before I knew it, Christmas would come and go, taking the windows with it. Oh well, we will go next year, I would say to myself, but next year would come and go also. It has been a very long time since my very grown children and I have seen a Myers Christmas window together. 
As I gazed wistfully at the windows, I was transported back to another time. A time that was happy and joyful, as a child, a teenager and then as an adult. A day spent with my precious mum, enjoying each others company, enjoying the day out, enjoying the train ride. Enjoying the Myers Christmas windows. Take care. Liz...
What a shame you will be too late to see the window displays in Paris. I wonder if I can find some photos I took many years ago...
ReplyDeleteLiz, your post has brought back happy memories for me of going to G. Fox and Company with my parents and brother and sisters. It was the big Christmas shopping outing for years and years. Sadly the story got sold to a big chain and the unique feel of a long run family department store was lost forever. Thank you for your lovely post and for bringing back some lovely memories!
ReplyDeleteLiz, thank you for sharing a very special tradition. Frozen in my memory is a picture of myself looking into a window decorated like Toy Land. Now I do not know where we were or how old I was, but I remember the feeling. Toy Land, Joy Land.
ReplyDeleteYou are my train blog friend! The closest we get to a train here is the light rail that takes us downtown.
Happy holidays, Liz!
thanks, Liz, for sharing a dear Christmas tradition. This is such a bittersweet time of year, especially as we get older. I look at my children and their Christmas is all joy, but mine has a bit of sadness from missing the things and people that are gone. I feel a great responsibility to make lasting memories for them.
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