Grade School Charm

I love charm bracelets. There's just something about being able to wear your milestones and hobbies and favorite doodads on your wrist. When I was little, I loved playing with my mom's chunky gold bracelet with the state charms she collected while travelling with her youth choir. I thought it was just beautimous. Whenever I see someone wearing a charm bracelet, I am instantly drawn to it. But, only if I know the person wearing it. I've had strangers accost my arm in the mall and it's just plain weird.

In grade school, THE gift for girls' birthdays was a James Avery charm. The bracelet you just HAD to wear it on was the plain one with the hook clasp, so all the charms clumped together in one bunch at the bottom. Fantastic. It really hurt when you were writing and I used to get in trouble if I wore it to my piano lesson. When I took it off, I had little dents all over my wrist from all the clumpage. The unicorn was the worst; it always speared me with its magical horn. Darn you, fantastical creature! Once, one of my friends lost a bunch of charms on the field when her bracelet clasp unhooked. The whole class was out there searching for the rest of recess for little ballet slippers. I'm surprised they weren't banned from school!

I bought my hook clasp bracelet and my first charm in 3rd grade. The charm was an itty bitty cowboy hat to represent riding horses with my cousins at their farm in Teneha, Texas. My best friend who has since passed away, gave me a 3d piano charm which was MUCH cooler than the flat one. The little ichthus was actually a dangle ring (another must have accessory) that one of my mom's best friends gave me for confirmation. The ring must have been size 0, it was so tiny. It had to be cut off from my pinky finger! After that, it soon found a spot on my bracelet. There's a little megaphone for my jr. high cheerleading days and a roller skate to remind me of all the awesome Friday night skating at the roller rink...couples skate! (I was never "going" with anyone to do that.) See that monkey next to the music note? It was a Girl Scout cookie selling prize. I peddled those cookies like nobody's business to win that!

After 5th grade, I put away my James Avery bracelet. It hung around waiting patiently for many years. Then, after college, I gently coaxed it out of the James Avery signature blue felt bag. The bracelet no longer fit and I couldn't bear to lose any charms, so I bought a silver link bracelet and had them soldered on.

I've added a few charms to my original bracelet since its rebirth, including the Noah's ark from my mother-in-law and the little girls from one of my sorority house roommates. But for the most part, I've managed to keep it suspended in grade school. Do you have a charm bracelet? I'd love to hear its story.