My Mother had a huge, heavy solid gold charm bracelet for as long as I can remember.  It was one of her nicest pieces of jewelry and jammed with mementos of her life.  I remember it had a little San Francisco trolley car, a lamp post from her honeymoon in New Orleans with Daddy, a grand piano because she studied classically and played for almost two decades, and many other little things that would jangle when she’d walk.  She wore it to church sometimes but always on Mother’s Day.  When Maris was born I told Burk I would like to start my a charm bracelet of my own only in silver.  Although we had been to some great places on our travels, I wanted the bracelet to begin with the three of us as a family.  I also thought it would help him have a built-in Mother’s Day present each year where he wouldn’t have to struggle to come up with something.  It would mean a lot to me and not even be expensive.  (I am assuming Maris will take command of this in a few years.)  Just like Mama, I wear my bracelet to church sometimes but always proudly on Mother’s Day.  Mine only has about 14 charms so far.  It started with a pair of baby booties that has Maris’ name and birthdate engraved on the back.  Next was a Saguaro cactus commemorating our first family trip to see my cousins in Phoenix before Maris was even six months old.  Then came a tiny Zia sun representing Santa Fe, and a scalloped shell to commemorate our first family trip to the beach which was Sanibel Island.  In the center is the Eiffel Tower for our first family trip to Paris, where Maris would walk by herself for the very first time, and I have the pyramid we climbed in the ancient Mayan ruins of Coba.  American author James Patterson said, “I love to tell stories.  It’s a delight for me.”  Sharing stories of personal experience is one of my delights.  Each charm in my bracelet is like a mini novel I can reveal or simply privately recall as a reminder of a special time in my life.  I look forward to adding more — for the experiences, the memories, and the stories.  Maybe someone else will be charmed, too.