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Every year on Black Friday, while others are out hunting for bargains, we put up our Christmas tree. We fetch the boxes from the basement, and I carefully unwrap hundreds of ornaments that have been packed in tissue paper since last January.
When looking for ornaments, one of my favorite places to visit is the Orchard Nursery in Lafayette, CA. Each year, they fill their main shop with dozens of decorated themed trees. They have garden-themed trees, candy-themed trees, trees for dog lovers, cat lovers, and animals of all kinds. There are trees for games, sports, music, and travel. You name it, and they likely have a tree full of it. And it’s beautiful. I love visiting each year to shop for gifts and to select a new ornament. When my kids were younger, they would each choose an ornament too.
Ours is not exactly a “themed” tree. No Pantone color scheme, no curated collection of vintage blown glass, no over-arching theme. In fact, there are few matching ornaments on our tree. It’s more an eclectic hodge-podge of decorations, collected one at a time over many years. Not that these ornaments don’t have meaning…They all do.
My kids’ interests are reflected in the ornaments they chose. My marine biologist daughter contributed a dangling jellyfish, a blown-glass crab, a bejeweled shark, and many other fishy finds. Likewise, my son selected the many transportation-themed pieces hanging from the branches. You don’t have to look too hard to find planes, trains, and even a San Francisco cable car. And his fascination with Star Wars means that you will also find an X-Wing Starfighter and even General Grievous. The creators of those I SPY books would have a field day with our tree.
Many of the pieces are hand-made. An avid cross-stitch enthusiast and crafter, I stitched many of these ornaments myself. It runs in the family. My daughter followed suit, crafting a felted and stuffed likeness of her pet guinea pig for the tree. And the oldest ornament? That’s a ceramic teddy bear that my grandmother made for me when I was just a girl.
As my kids were growing up, my mother would give us dated frames for their school pictures. Now when you look at my tree, you will find photos of my children from their very first Christmases up through their college graduations. You will also find photos of my mother and father, who have since passed. These memories are captured in smiling faces peering from its branches.
Upon reflection, I guess my tree does have a theme after all. FAMILY.
How about you? Do you have a favorite holiday tradition?