Growing up, I recall the first thing that my brother and I would do was run to the Christmas Tree at our Grandparent's place. Our mission was simple: find the blinking bulb from World War II era and find the golden Christmas ornament. The bulb was a neat phenomenon - lasted into the late 90s which by that time, we had families of our own. But the golden ornament was a curiosity. It is a simple, two-piece ornament that splits in half and is made of heavy cardboard. My grandfather made it out of a gift container prior to WWII. The tradition he started was putting a nickel into the ornament for every year it hung on the tree. And by the time we came along, there were a number of nickels in the ornament. My brother and I were young collectors back then, and we would always wonder what kind of nickels were in there. My grandfather told us that he would try to put a nickel dated for they year of that Christmas, but he admitted that it was a tougher task in the early days. On one Christmas, he opened the ornament so we could have a look inside: a number of Buffalo and Wartime Nickels. Many uncirculated nickels too. It was a mini-time capsule. By the 2000s, my grandparents passed on and my uncle had taken over the tradition...and now my brother has the honors. It's so full of nickels that it has to be hung on an inside branch as it is heavy. Anyway, I thought I'd pass this along in case there are others out there who have a similar tradition or perhaps would like to start one like this of their own. It made for some great memories for my brother and I, but also the non collectors in the family too, especially my younger cousins. Something always fun about a time capsule. Happy New Year everyone!
