The "perfect" Christmas tree for each family looks a little different. Some folks want them to be short and round. Some folks look for trees that are tall and skinny. Some want room between the branches for ornaments to dangle, and others want the tree to be full and thick. Some prefer short needles, and others like longer needles. Some choose a cut tree, and others keep an artificial one. Some people even have more than one tree! Sometimes our definition of the perfect Christmas tree changes over time, maybe as the kids grow up.
We haven't even talked about Christmas tree ornaments! They can be inherited, home-made, purchased for looks, or purchased to remember a vacation or other event. Is there a solution to Christmas tree clutter? Maybe it isn't even clutter at all? I do know our family tree has gotten smaller over the years. We used to live in a house where the tree was put in a room with a really high ceiling. Now we opt for a smaller tree in our present home. We used to put a small "kid Christmas tree" in the family room of our old house. Now, the one tree that we put up is in our family room. We seem to have extra lights and ornaments these days.
I have weeded out and donated some of the extra lights and ornaments. Some of the ornaments I will keep until my kids are ready for them when they have their own households. I look forward to giving them each a "starter set" of ornaments that will be a mix of inherited ornaments, ornaments they will remember from their childhood here, and ornaments they have made over the years. I think that will be fun.
Maybe it will be a little sad too because our perfect Christmas tree may become even smaller by then. But, I think I have to separate the Christmas tree from Christmas itself. The tree is, well, a tree. It is a decoration that we enjoy for about three weeks per year. What is Christmas? A lot more than that. It is a holiday that I try to keep in my heart all year round. Merry Christmas to you and your family!
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