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A very poor man lived with his wife. One day, his wife, who had very long hair asked him to buy her a comb for her hair to grow well and to be well-groomed. The man felt very sorry and said no. He explained that he did not even have enough money to fix the strap of his watch he had just broken. She did not insist on her request. The man went to work and passed by a watch shop, sold his damaged watch at a low price and went to buy a comb for his wife. He came home in the evening with the comb in his hand ready to give to his wife. He was surprised when he saw his wife with a very short hair cut. She had sold her hair and was holding a new watch band. Tears flowed simultaneously from their eyes, not for the futility of their actions, but for the reciprocity of their love. MORAL: To love is nothing, to be loved is something but to love and to be loved by the one you love,that is EVERYTHING. Never take love for granted.

BY: O. Henry 

I am sure many of you are very familiar with the “Gift of the Magi” story by O. Henry.  I was recently looking on the internet and I came across this version and it made me remember something that happened to me and I wanted to share the story with you.

Years ago, when Chris and I were newly married, we would go to the Ocean City Maryland shore every year for vacation.  Chris had made a tradition of buying me a gold bracelet at the shore each and every year.  We were just starting out so Chris would save all year and set aside that money for that special gift – and it really meant a lot to me.  It was always a high point of our vacation to go “bracelet shopping”! 

One year, after a lot of searching,  we had found the perfect bracelet and we were walking up to the register and getting ready to pay for it , when out of the blue.....my husband – who barely notices jewelry – was stopped in his tracks by a watch in the jewelry case. He said, “Oh Antonella… look, they have that watch I like.”  I was so shocked – I couldn’t answer (you know if I am at a loss for words – it was a BIG SHOCK!! ) We asked the owner if Chris could try it on. At that point, I saw something soooo familiar. You know what I'm talking about...that feeling you get when you find "that" piece of jewelry, the one that rocks your world. It's that face I always make....... Chris was making "The Face".  His eyes twinkled, a sweet smile spread across his face, his head tilted to the right, in admiration of the piece on his wrist. The watch was the exact same price as the bracelet I had already picked out - $150.  Chris never spends any money on himself, it's always for me and now for me and the kids. He is very selfless and would give the shirt, shoes and trousers off his back to a stranger. That's one of the many reasons I love him (oh, and his blue eyes and biceps melt me too!!! Lol).

Back to the story...  I said we would get the watch instead.  He said absolutely not – that he saved that money all year for my gift. We argued back and forth in front of the owner for quite a while. Finally, Chris handed the owner the watch and told him to put it away and ring up my bracelet. Grrrrr, I hate losing a fight.  As the owner and I walked up to the register, I looked over my shoulder and watched Chris gazing through the glass at the watch. I yelled back, “OK Chris – I am getting my bracelet, right?”  and sweet Chris replied “Definitely!”  I slid the bracelet to the owner and whispered  “You ring up that watch and put this bracelet away.” I pointed to the big red sign that read "All Sales Final" and very insistently said, "No matter what, you stick to that!"  He was so stunned that he just stood there.  Finally, he said all the people that come into his store were always “Me, Me, Me!” when their spouse was offering to buy them something.  In all his years, he had never seen someone turn it down and turn it around. He said he was so moved - that he gave us ½ price on the bracelet and we were able to buy the watch AND the bracelet.  We didn’t eat very much for the rest of the vacation because we were so broke – but it couldn’t have been more worth it!  I still have - and wear my bracelet to this day  - and here it is:

Chris wore that watch until he wore it out but here is what it looked like:

To borrow from the story above :  “To love is nothing, to be loved is something but to love and to be loved by the one you love, THAT is EVERYTHING.”

We are still each other’s Valentines to this day…. Have a wonderful St. Valentine’s Day!

XOXOXOXO,

A