Christmas Gifts for a Widow This Year

For a widow, the first Christmas alone is full of small shocks: the tree nobody carried in, one stocking fewer, his coat still on the hook. A Christmas gift for someone who lost their husband should make her feel less alone in the house, not just remembered. Here are 11 gentle ideas, some practical and some personal. If you give only one thing, give her a written invitation to your table on Christmas Day, with the time you will pick her up.

Listen to a memorial song from Songbond

This one was made for another family. Yours would carry his name and your stories.

11 Christmas gift ideas for a widow

1. A written invitation for Christmas Day. Not "you are always welcome," but a card with the time, the place and when you will pick her up. It is much easier to say yes to a plan than to an open door.
2. The jobs he used to do. Bring the tree in, fix the dripping tap, clear the driveway after the first snow. If you cannot do it yourself, hire someone for the season. Free, or $50 to $150.
3. A chain for his wedding ring. Some widows want to keep his ring close. A sturdy gold or silver chain lets her wear it every day. $30 to $150.
4. A song about him and their life together ($39.90). You share how they met, what he called her and the life they built, and Songbond turns it into an original song. She can play it when the house is quiet.
5. Their wedding photo, restored. Old prints fade and crack. A photo restorer can repair it and print a fresh copy for the bedside table. $30 to $80.
6. A calendar for the new year, filled with family. Put photos of the grandkids, the dog and the family on every month, and mark the birthdays in advance. $20 to $35.
7. A January visit schedule. Line up family and friends so someone calls or visits every week in January. It costs nothing and covers the quiet stretch after the holidays.
8. A bird feeder outside her window. Something alive to watch through the short winter days, and a reason to step outside in the morning. $25 to $60 with seed.
9. A journal for the letters she wants to write him. Some widows find it helps to keep talking to him. A good notebook with a note on the first page gives that a place. $15 to $30.
10. Tickets to a holiday concert, with you. A choir, a carol service or a matinee. She may not want to go out alone yet, so the gift is the company as much as the ticket. $30 to $100.
11. A video message from the grandkids. Ask each grandchild to record a short message about what they remember of Grandpa. Put them together on one phone so she can watch them all at once.

How to choose for her

Think about how she lives now. A widow with family down the street needs different things from one alone in a house two states away. Look at who will be with her on the day, and who will not.

• If she is surrounded by family: the song, the restored photo or the grandkids' messages.
• If she lives alone: the invitation, the January visits or the bird feeder.
• If she is private: the ring chain, the journal or the jobs done quietly.

The hard days come after Christmas

December is busy. People visit, cards arrive, the phone rings. Then January comes and the house goes quiet. The kindest thing you can do this Christmas is look further ahead. Write his birthday, their wedding anniversary and the date he died into your own calendar, and call on each one. She will remember who called.

A song to keep him close

If it feels right, you can create a song about her husband with his name and the stories of their marriage. It is ready within 24 hours, and with express delivery it comes in about an hour, with nothing to ship.

Also in the Journal: memorial songs for a late husband and the first Christmas without a loved one.