Learning sentimental value of a cherished gift

When I was 4 years old I knew exactly what I wanted for Christmas and it was not a doll. I wanted my daddy to buy me a train. It would have a red engine and my little dolls would ride in the boxcars where they would see all the sights.

My mother tried to discourage the idea about a train.

She said, “Stop that silly nonsense.”

We were in the living room at home and since I had become good at arguing, mother and I were having a time of it. My sister, Jeannie, at the age of 5, suddenly poked her head in the door, skipped over to the Christmas tree and hid behind it. Mother didn’t notice her since...