[00:07.00]It was Christmas 1961. I was teaching in a small town in Ohio
[00:13.46]where my twenty-seven third graders eagerly anticipated the great day of gifts giving.
[00:19.37]Each day the children produced some new wonder—strings of popcorn, hand-made trinkets,
[00:26.70]and German bells made from wallpaper samples, which we hung from the ceiling.
[00:31.62]Through it all she remained aloof, watching from afar, seemingly miles away.
[00:38.29]I wondered what would happen to this quiet child,
[00:42.16]once so happy, now so suddenly withdrawn.
[00:46.28]I hoped the festivities would appeal to her. But nothing did.
[00:51.42]The day of gift-giving finally came.
[00:54.49]We oohed and aahed over our handiwork as the presents were exchanged.
[00:59.85]Through it all, she sat quietly watching.
[01:03.13]I had made a special pouch for her, red and green with white lace.
[01:08.49]I wanted very much to see her smile.
[01:11.56]She opened the package so slowly and carefully.
[01:15.93]I waited but she turned away.
[01:18.77]After school the children left in little groups,
[01:23.05]but she lingered, watching them go out the door.
[01:26.10]I sat down to catch my breath,
[01:28.86]hardly aware of what was happening when she came to me with outstretched hands,
[01:33.55]bearing a small white box, unwrapped and slightly soiled,
[01:38.47]as though it had been held many times by unwashed, childish hands.
[01:43.06]“For me?” I asked with a weak smile.
[01:46.65]She said not a word, but nodded her head.
[01:49.74]I took the box and gingerly opened it.
[01:53.31]There inside, glistening green, lay a golden chain.
[01:57.94]In a flash I knew—she had made it for her mother, a mother she would never see again,
[02:04.94]a mother who would never hold her or brush her hair or share a funny story,
[02:10.09]a mother who would never again hear her childish joys or sorrows.
[02:15.12]A mother who had taken her own life just three weeks before.
[02:19.83]I held out the chain. She took it in both her hands, reached forward,
[02:25.19]and secured the simple clasp at the back of my neck.
[02:28.80]She stepped back then as if to see that all was well.
[02:33.17]I looked down at the golden chain, then back at the giver,
[02:37.85]“Maria, it is so beautiful. She would have loved it.”
[02:42.47]Neither of us could stop the tears.
[02:45.65]She stumbled into my arms and we wept together.
[02:49.83]And for that brief moment I became her mother,
[02:53.52]for she had given me the greatest gift of all: herself.
