50 Stories About Christmas Presents That Will Make You Ugly Cry

By Thought Catalog Updated January 12, 2024

22. I am always cold, whereas my husband is always warm. Last year my husband bought me a super soft, twin sized, heated blanket for in bed and a heated wrap for in the living room.

Why I never thought to ask for something like this for Christmas before, is beyond me.

By far, the best presents I have ever received.

23. My first car.

A month after my 16th birthday (which was in November, 1990) my dad bought me a 1984 Ford T-Bird for Christmas.

It was a beater. It wouldn’t have been great car when new and it hadn’t been cared for since. But I fucking loved it.

Trace the scars life has left you. It will remind you that at one point, you fought for something. You believed.

“You are the only person who gets to decide if you are happy or not—do not put your happiness into the hands of other people. Do not make it contingent on their acceptance of you or their feelings for you. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if someone dislikes you or if someone doesn’t want to be with you. All that matters is that you are happy with the person you are becoming. All that matters is that you like yourself, that you are proud of what you are putting out into the world. You are in charge of your joy, of your worth. You get to be your own validation. Please don’t ever forget that.” — Bianca Sparacino

Excerpted from The Strength In Our Scars by Bianca Sparacino.