This spoon was darkened with tarnish when I received it. Though silverplate and not sterling, it holds the value of sterling in my mind.
This simple sugar spoon belonged to my mother-in-law. As I removed the tarnish, I thought of all the people who had held this spoon in their hands through the years.
Years of use... always beautiful and delicate.

I can never remember entering her house and not being fed.
There were always homemade cookies, pies, cakes and puddings.
She would brew a pot of coffee or a cup of tea and we would sit at the table and talk and partake of the goodies.
This is how she showed her love to her family. It was a part of who she was. And we would use this spoon to sweeten our coffee or tea.

If that spoon could talk, it would tell stories of life: the good times and the bad... accomplishments and disappointments... birth and death... laughter and tears.

And today, as we pass the sugar and sweeten our coffee... we remember.
We remember my father-in-law's stories... he is no longer with us.
And we will remember Jennie... now 92 years old, but no longer able to feed us.

Life goes on and we have come to appreciate the simple things in life... like Jennie's sugar spoon and the beautiful memories of a special time in our lives.