Once upon a time, when the kids were young we made an entire day out of getting our Christmas tree. Each year our tradition started with bundling up the kids and dog and caravanning to our local Christmas tree farm with friends. We then hopped on a rickety wagon which slowly meandered through the countryside where the trees grew towards the sky. We spent the next hour traipsing through the woods in search of the perfect Stoutland tree. Once chosen and cut, we saddled up beside the roaring fire with a cup of hot cocoa. And, as you can well imagine, tree decorating was another drawn-out, but wonderful, process.
Times are different, and especially more so this year. To be honest, it’s been years since my grown kids and husband enjoyed all that hoopla. So, this year, we drove to our local tree farm, selected a pre-cut tree and were home in less than 45 minutes. My family is happy to help if I ask, but I am happy to handle the rest on my own because it still brings me joy.
With endless time at home this 2020, I decided to maximize the tree process. I let her, yes our tree is always a her, chill in our driveway for a few days taking in the view, water and allowing her branches time to fall. Then she moved into her new digs and I filled her stand up with more water. Every morning and night I check her water levels because I worry about her. If you know me, you're not surprised by this. A few days later she was ready to handle 700 mini white lights and our treasury of ornaments. Again, this is probably not much of a revelation and something many of you likely do.
As I unwrapped our ornaments I was overwhelmed with memories of Christmases past. To some, the rather ugly mouse on skates ornament is just that. Yet my husband and I are whisked back 25 years finding this little guy hanging onto a discarded tree while walking to speed up the labor of our first born child. Those adorable little sneakers are actually the first pairs of shoes we laced up on our kid’s itty bitty feet. There are ornaments from every family vacation we’ve ever taken. That lion finger puppet from my childhood has been an ornament for over 35 years. I have an ornament given to me by a dear friend who knew it would guarantee when she was gone, she would always be a part of our holiday tradition. There is an entire selection of ornaments from my Uncle, who embodied the spirit of Santa. I could go on and on, since we have two plastic tubs full.
If all these ornaments could speak, we would have ourselves a new tradition. But for now, in the quiet of the night lit by twinkle lights, I swear my tree and I can hear voices, the laughter and all the stories being retold. I also believe she stands a bit prouder now, knowing she was chosen this 2020 holiday season with the honor of carefully displaying and caring for our Christmas memories.
Moral: Everything has a story to share-the trick is to listen.
Your sentimental friend,
A few little holiday things I do:
Hanging lighting can be a real holiday mood killer. I split my tree in thirds and string lights of 100 from the bottom to the top, linking new strands as I go. If any lights go out during the season it’s far easier to add strands of 100 to fill in. The bonus is these shorter strands are more manageable for me on my own.
During 2020 I grappled with my potential hoarding tendencies, but for some reason couldn't bring myself to dispose of a basic white glass globe from an old light fixture. Well, thank goodness, as this holiday season I filled that sucker with tiny colored lights and turned it upside down on a table. It looks like the moon at night and reminds me of a lesson from Put Your Best Foot Forward, “The moon taught me… there is almost always a bright side.”
