It's Not About the Size of the Tree

The first Christmas after we moved into our house—feeling extremely festive and perhaps overly excited about the vaulted cathedral ceiling in our living room—we bought a new artificial Christmas tree. (I know, artificial isn’t nearly as awesome as real. But I have this thing where I’m pretty much incapable of keeping plants alive indoors. My thumbs are black, not green. And we prefer to not burn down our house.)

The thing is twelve feet tall, before decorations. (No, I am not joking. Yes, I am crazy. And before you ask, I probably won’t buy one quite this big ever again. It requires an insane amount of time to set up and take down. But I love the end result.)

Anyway, that first year when the tree was up and decorated, one of my new neighbors made an offhanded comment that was something like, “Wow, how will the rest of us ever keep up with that?”

Even though it was said in a joking tone, those words stung deep. Our choice of tree was not about competition. It was about joy. Joy for being in our new house, joy for the season and everything it meant, and joy for being able to make our family celebration as big or as tall as we chose to make it.Or on the other side of that coin, as simple or as small.

The day we walked into Costco and saw the tree, my kids squealed in delight, and their eyes lit up with sparkles. And funny enough, the cost turned out to be significantly less than many of the other trees we’d looked at that day. It was a good purchase that has lasted seven years and counting.

But every year when I’m decorating this monstrosity, that particular comment comes back and reminds me why I do things the way I choose, and why I don’t do them the way other people would have me do.

Regardless of what some might think, Christmas spirit is not determined by the size of your tree (or the number of lights) any more than a man’s masculinity is determined by the size of his truck or SUV. Any more than a woman’s worth is determined by her ability to sew or cook or clean house. (Yeah, that last one is so cliché it’s ridiculous. Forgive me for that. I’m lacking in all those departments.)

There was not a lit Christmas tree in Bethlehem or lights circling the roof of the stable. No gifts wrapped in expensive paper. No Black Friday shopping days. There was a family, experiencing quiet moments of pure, unadulterated joy.

Our tree could be a one-foot twig for all that it matters. We’d still find joy within the quiet warmth of our family. The only difference is it wouldn’t be quite so visible to the rest of the world.

What do you think? Does the size of your tree really matter? And do you really care what the neighbors think?

*Don't forget to enter this week's totally fab I *Heart* Followers contest* 

Christmas Light Spottings and Contest Winner

I love the holidays. The warmth of inside on cold days, the smells of oncoming winter (I know, totally out of character for me), and especially the decorations. There's just something about twinkling lights and pine boughs that make a person feel...well, happy, content, and giving. It's nothing like the contentment of having the sun shine on my skin, but I'll take it.

But people, really, don't you think the holidays lose their novelty if you celebrate them for six months out of a year?

This weekend I've seen three houses/restaurants that have already turned on their Christmas lights. And while I've been known to put up my tree in the first weeks of November (it's 12 feet tall and a lot of work) I found myself amazed that we're already heading into the holiday season. It's only the beginning of October!

But...I guess those people might have the right idea. I mean, if it has to be stormy and cold, like it is where I live, and since we're only a month away from Halloween, which for me is pretty much the holiday kickoff, then it stands to reason that we prepare to usher that kickoff in by getting out the decorations. Right?

Okay, maybe not the Christmas ones. I admit, though, that it made me a tiny bit excited for the upcoming holiday season.

Just saying.

Guess I should go find that other box of fall decor and get to work.

On a totally different subject, I realize I was supposed to pick a winner for for the copy of Zion's Promise by Chris Jefferies on Friday, and I totally forgot. Well, actually, I didn't forget, I just got way busy and didn't get it done. So, in case any of you were waiting with baited breath to see if you'd won this awesome prize, I'm very sorry for the delay.

And the winner is...

David J. West.

Clap, clap, clap, cheer, yell, yahoo, cheer, clap, clap, dance, clap, clap, clap.

David, email me with your snail mail address and I'll get your prize in the mail this week.

And since I'm blogging today, I'll leave you all with a thought:

"Flying is learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss."
~Douglas Adams

Until next time, write on.


Nichole