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Twenty-two years ago this week, I married my best friend. The church was decorated beautifully for the Christmas season with poinsettias of white and red. Balls of holly and mistletoe hung from the ceiling at the reception.

Traditional vows were spoken to one another as we pledged our lives together in front of God and man.

After the ceremony, we made our way to South Carolina for our honeymoon. My new husband's parents had gifted us with a few days at a resort in Edisto Beach, about an hour outside of Charleston.

The time was surreal as we became accustomed to our new roles as man and wife.

For the first couple of days of our trip, we drove into Charleston. We enjoyed touring some of the historic homes in the area that had been decorated for the season.

We also walked up and down King Street, enjoying how it was all decked out for the holidays. Strolling through the City Market, we enjoyed looking at everything laid out on tables for sale.

We drove through historic parts of town, enjoying getting to know this town neither of us had been to before. Even the rain that fell did not dampen our euphoric mood.

On our last day in Edisto Beach, before returning home to spend the holiday with our families, we decided to just hang out around the beach area instead of making the trip into town.

We checked out bicycles from the recreation office of our condo and traveled down the short road to the beach. The day was sunny and warm, a marked difference from the previous days spent in Charleston. We remarked that it felt more like summer than the day before Christmas.

We parked the borrowed bicycles and walked along the beach for a little bit. The beach was completely empty this late- December afternoon. We collected a few seashells and took a few photos before making our way back to return the bikes.

Later, we decided to visit a gallery we had passed several times on the way to and from Charleston. We entered the store and began to walk around, looking at all the items artisans had made. There were wooden handmade globes and neatly crafted handmade kaleidoscopes.

We were the only ones in the store, and the shop owner began to talk with us. He learned we were on our honeymoon, and we learned this was his last day before closing up the shop for a few months.

He was so gracious and nice, and we had enjoyed meeting him. I walked around looking for something small we could afford to thank him for the sweet conversation. At first glance, everything there seemed to be way out of our newlywed price range.

I found a small Christmas ornament we could afford. It was 2 inches by 2 inches, hanging diagonally, with a piece of green stained glass encased with a pewterlike edging framing it. A simple Christmas tree was painted on the front of the glass.

I showed it to my husband, who agreed it would make a lovely memento of our time there.

We handed the small, unique ornament to the shop owner and pulled out our money. As he wrapped it in paper, he told us to put our money away. He, too, had enjoyed our company that day and wanted to give this ornament to us as a wedding/Christmas gift.

Awestruck at his generosity, we accepted his gift with thanks and headed back to our condo to begin packing to return home later that night.

Year after year, as we pull down all of our Christmas decorations, we look for that ornament first. As it is placed on our Christmas tree in a prominent place in the front near the top, we both remember the kindness of the stranger who gave it to us so many years ago.

The ornament not only has become a keepsake of our first Christmas together as husband and wife, but also one we cherish as we celebrate our wedding anniversary five days before Christmas each December.

Linda Vestal is a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend living in Gibsonville. Contact her with comments or story ideas at lindavestal@triad.rr.com.