I remember years ago my mom saying to me “I’m not going to put up a tree anymore”. She was in her 70’s at the time and her rational was that she created magic with her Christmas Decor, she didn’t need the tree. I was taken aback by this and sad that there would be no tree. But of course she was right. Her home was full of life and Christmas cheer even without the tree.

Hitting the ripe old age of 70 this year, I honestly thought, do I really want a tree. Let’s face it, the tree is a hassle. Taking out all the ornaments, setting up the tree, making sure it looks perfect from all sides. Then there is all the fill to make it look lush. It can take a couple of days to do the tree, and then there is the constant tweaking. I just can’t leave it alone.

I have had dreams for a few years now of a sparse tree. But frankly there is nothing wrong with the tree that I have, and I just can’t bring myself to spend the $$$ required to get myself into a sparse tree. Then, what would I do with all those ornaments, I so lovingly collected back in the 90’s!

A couple of years ago I decided to loose the bottom of our 7.5′ tree. Every year I had to make a home for it, move furniture out of the way etc. You know the drill! I was just tired of it. The top two tiers of the tree were perfect for the window seat. All I had to do was lose the cushion and pillows. The funny thing was we hosted the husbands family the other night and the whole time I was planning the party, I was envisioning the window seat as 2 available spots to sit. I didn’t realize until I got up to move myself to the window seat that oh yeah, it’s not available. Bring down some chairs!!!

Anyway, I bit the bullet and pulled out the tree and got it all decorated. Going thru the ornaments one by one and taking myself back to a place and time where I decided for whatever reason to bring this one home. Yes it was worth the exercise. Rather than using my beautiful tree skirt I decided to place the tree in a wicker suitcase. Unfortunately you can hardly see it. I added in a piece of blue fabric to cover the stand.

Next was to do the top, filling it with large stems creating a bit of a nest. I have an owl that I have used as a tree topper for a few years. This year I decided to put him more off to the side, and I love him there. Then I added more stems throughout the tree. Drippy pine cones of varying size, blueberry bramble to bring the blue in, some gold leafy stems for sparkle, and some copper sparkly wiry stuff that was a garland years ago. I cut it up and tucked it in. With all that stuff in play it was time to start adding in the ornaments.

As I’ve stated here before we do a family tree. I do love themed tree’s that other’s do but, that’s just not me. I like the whole mess of a cheeky crazy Santa sitting next to something beautiful. Hand painted balls when I needed to keep my hands busy the Christmas I was losing my dad. Stuff like that.

The oh there you are, when you put your hands on a favorite ornament. The day my mom discovered a package addressed to me on her front porch, after a special lunch with one of my friends at her home. The friend never claimed the gift was from her, but I know, and think of her and that day every time I pull the ship out of the box.

Then there is the “what was I thinking” ornaments. We all have those. They go on the tree too. The sly smile you get when you pull the ornament out that you know you shouldn’t have spent the money that day. But you did it anyway! There’s the ornaments you buy for your kids because, they just have to have it, or YOU loved it. Your kid goes off to have a tree of their own and you go to give them “THEIR” ornaments and they say why would I want that stupid thing.

Life is all about the echoes. The reasons why. They don’t have to be important or life altering. The echoes of a family, the people you love the most, the ones you wake up with, laugh with, roll your eyes at, the ones who give you a hug when you need it most. Love, regardless of the fact that they irritate you. The people YOU hug and say what were you thinking! I love you anyway. The people who can truly make you laugh because, they grew up in the same house as you. I’m hearing all those echoes today, because my little family won’t all be under my roof. That’s ok because I have those echoes and there is always face time!

So, no matter what you celebrate or how you celebrate, I wish for you what you would wish for yourself. Go forth and concur. Thank you for continuing to spend your time with me.

Thanks for stopping.

Shelley