The Christmas tree is magical.
I have always thought so, along with every other child that has ever sat endlessly below it.
My mom didn't just have one Christmas tree she had many and they were stunning. In fact she had a forest of about five unbelievably decorated trees for many years of my growing up and one in the kitchen and every bedroom. So when I think of Christmas past I picture me and my little sister Annabelle (my constant friend, sidekick that was often referred to as my shadow) in our jammies sitting for hours below those twinkling lights. Between the forest of trees and the presents, sitting under Christmas trees was our favorite December pastime.
We would hold, squeeze and shake each gift smiling endlessly making guesses about what was hidden beneath that Santa wrapping paper. Ahhh the anticipation nearly killed us but we never peeked not even one time.
Well I grew up like all little girls do and then I got married.
It was time for me to get my own tree. Oh how I wanted that tree to be beautiful. I missed my sidekick and I missed my Mom's beautiful trees. There was just one huge problem we had absolutely no money for ornaments. So my friend Michelle and I came up with an economical solution...dried oranges. It was actually quite beautiful and I knew this was a temporary solution until I got my own forest of beautiful trees just like my Mom's.
Just one problem my beautiful trees never came.
Not the trees and not the ornaments.
I ended up with a hodge podge of my growing up ornaments that my Mom had given us and all the homemade pictures from nursery or crocheted who knows what from school and the thingy that someone made at a Christmas party. It is seriously "a whatever you can stick on the branches" Christmas tree. The crazy thing about it is I absolutely love it. I watch my kids decorate it and I don't change one thing. ( Usually I would intervene on something like that.)
That tree represents everything that Christmas is and everything that is closest to my heart. It is memories of years gone by and the reminder that this very Christmas season will someday be a distant memory.
Now its 2011 and my own children sit below that tree for hours. I still ache for my little shadow to help me guess what each present holds but now as I watch my own kiddos sitting beside the tree it makes me so happy and it keeps a smile on my face just the same.
I searched for a picture of me and my little sister. No such luck but I found this beauty taken of all my sisters in 1982 in Canada.
My mom didn't just have one Christmas tree she had many and they were stunning. In fact she had a forest of about five unbelievably decorated trees for many years of my growing up and one in the kitchen and every bedroom. So when I think of Christmas past I picture me and my little sister Annabelle (my constant friend, sidekick that was often referred to as my shadow) in our jammies sitting for hours below those twinkling lights. Between the forest of trees and the presents, sitting under Christmas trees was our favorite December pastime.
We would hold, squeeze and shake each gift smiling endlessly making guesses about what was hidden beneath that Santa wrapping paper. Ahhh the anticipation nearly killed us but we never peeked not even one time.
Well I grew up like all little girls do and then I got married.
It was time for me to get my own tree. Oh how I wanted that tree to be beautiful. I missed my sidekick and I missed my Mom's beautiful trees. There was just one huge problem we had absolutely no money for ornaments. So my friend Michelle and I came up with an economical solution...dried oranges. It was actually quite beautiful and I knew this was a temporary solution until I got my own forest of beautiful trees just like my Mom's.
Just one problem my beautiful trees never came.
Not the trees and not the ornaments.
I ended up with a hodge podge of my growing up ornaments that my Mom had given us and all the homemade pictures from nursery or crocheted who knows what from school and the thingy that someone made at a Christmas party. It is seriously "a whatever you can stick on the branches" Christmas tree. The crazy thing about it is I absolutely love it. I watch my kids decorate it and I don't change one thing. ( Usually I would intervene on something like that.)
That tree represents everything that Christmas is and everything that is closest to my heart. It is memories of years gone by and the reminder that this very Christmas season will someday be a distant memory.
Now its 2011 and my own children sit below that tree for hours. I still ache for my little shadow to help me guess what each present holds but now as I watch my own kiddos sitting beside the tree it makes me so happy and it keeps a smile on my face just the same.
I searched for a picture of me and my little sister. No such luck but I found this beauty taken of all my sisters in 1982 in Canada.
My "anything goes" tree
I am grateful for little sisters and Christmas trees.
1 comment:
Wow. I really think your blog is my favorite blog:)I hope you guys have a merry Christmas. Love you and miss you!!
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