Christmas today might seem like it is all about the latest gadgets, the most current fads, and the newest toys. But it wasn't always that way.
Each year, Christmas serves as a reminder of the simpler times, with its sense of nostalgia and tradition. Gift-giving used to be much less complicated too, as with these vintage Christmas gifts like the Radio Flyer wagon.
Christine Churchill is an 82-year-old woman who grew up in Wales. At the age of five, she wrote two heartwarmingly simple letters to Father Christmas, and placed them up her chimney.
In an incredible – and almost miraculous – turn of events, those letters have just been discovered after being left untouched for 77 years!
Scroll through to see exactly what five-year-old Christine wished for, and to hear her incredible response to being reunited with her long-lost letters.
These amazing words from the hand of a child are a true reminder of the simpler times and the simpler things in life.
[H/T: Daily Mail]
Julia Pugh currently owns Garthmyl Hall in Wales. While doing some renovations on the house, she discovered two letters in the walls of what is now a bathroom.
Their original resting place was in the chimney of a child's playroom.
And the author of those letters was a former resident of Garthmyl Hall — five-year-old Christine Churchill.
Though Christine was only five when she wrote to Father Christmas, she is now 82-years-old.
Christine told the Daily Mail about life in the 1930s. "We had very simple wants. There was no television and no radio. I learned the piano from about the age of five, so I could read music and books. Life was simple."
She continued, "Christmases were very special. I remember them very well. We were never allowed into the drawing room until Christmas Day, where the tree would be decorated on Christmas Eve."
"If we were very good, we would be allowed to help decorate the drawing room beforehand, using paper chains and decorations we had made ourselves."
But when Christine was reunited with her childhood letters, she was absolutely floored.
She told the Daily Mail, "I was just flabbergasted to see the letters. I remember we were told to put them up the chimney in the playroom, I presume because they were not in use."
Christine's first letter reads:
"Dear Father Xmas,
Please bring me some nice toys and a hymn book. Age 5.
Love, Christine"
Though her second letter is much harder to read after all of these years, it appears that Christine wrote to Santa asking for "a dolly case," "a box of crayons," and "a pair of scissors."
Christine told the Daily Mail, "We had simple presents: My brother had little wooden building bricks and a jigsaw puzzle, and I had my dollies. I probably got my crayons and a drawing book."
Christine misses the simpler times, believing that gift-giving at the holidays isn't the same as it used to be.
"I do remember wanting my own hymn book. I wonder how many children now ask for a hymn book?"
She continued, "I get absolutely aghast with how materialistic we have become, especially at Christmas. We want more, more, more… Children now don't appreciate things because they have more than they can cope with."
Christine's description of her childhood Christmas, along with her simple and beautiful letters, truly do remind us of a much simpler time.
She described her Christmas stockings, "Every year there would be a tangerine in the toe, with a two-shilling piece and perhaps a book – just one or two little things."
This nostalgic look back is an important reminder about the true meaning of Christmas. "The stockings were done up very beautifully by my mother, and we were absolutely thrilled with them. Life was more pleasant than what it has become."
What do you think of these letters to Father Christmas from a five-year-old? Let us know in the comments.
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