Friday, January 4, 2013



Dear Christmas Tree,

Usually you make an exit on New Year's Day.  I developed this habit as a young mother who felt like she was about to go down the Rabbit Hole come January and wanted to make sure that at least the Christmas stuff was packed away before she did it.   I think I've mentioned here before that one year TRQ left our tree up forever so that the blue sateen balls were falling off and rolling around the floor and all my fifth-grade friends kept asking me why we still had a Christmas tree in the living room.  THE HUMILIATION!

When I grew up I realized that TRQ was struggling with a mighty depression that year and hence . . . the forgotten tree.  Still.  I didn't want a repeat of that experience in my own grownup house.

But this year, oh Christmas Tree of 2012, you're still up.  We've had company and surgeries and now the Oregon kids (back in town for good) are moving their stuff out this weekend, and I figured I'd wait for the take-down mess.

And guess what.  I'm enjoying you so this first week of January--your lingering scent and spirt.  You've comforted me with your lights and old ornaments and happy memories.  Who knew?   Anyhoo.  I'm glad you're still here.

Thanks.

4 comments:

Lisa B. said...

we had all our various Christmas lights on last night, including the tree, and it was so lovely. I've vowed to take it down in a timely way...but I'm not in TOO big a hurry.

radagast said...

Glad you're here, too, at TWC.

James said...

Ours is still up, but not for the scent or its beauty. Its a faux-fir with LED lights that can alternately shine white and colored. So it is a really beautiful tree, which is what you expect with an artificial tree. The reason it is up, however, is because our 12 year old asked if we could keep it up until school starts again. We didn't have it the day after Thanksgiving, and he felt we needed a Christmas tree in our life just a little bit longer.

Louise Plummer said...

Ours is down. Poinsettias thrown out. Christmas 2012 has been expunged.