One of the things I like about Christmas is that the house gets decorated in all festive colors.  Wreath on the front door, pots of poinsettias setting here and there, the mantle showing its Christmas colors, and the main item – the Christmas tree with lights, ornaments, and other decorations.

This all inside mind you as I don’t decorate the outside for a number of reasons – the weather is not conducive for me to be out stringing lights and setting up other displays, its not usually good weather wise when it is time to put it all away, and I’m too old to be climbing ladders and such.  I just enjoy my neighbors’ displays.

But to the tree.  Christmas without a tree just doesn’t seem like Christmas. We have always had a tree of some sort during the 52 years Donna and I have been married.  Our first tree together was in 1967 and it was the first time either of us were not going to be with family over the holidays.  I was in the army and stationed in Arlington, VA.  We lived off-post in a three room apartment  ($85 a month with heat included.)  Donna had a clerical job in the Pentagon and I was just an E-4 so money wasn’t exactly plentiful, but we were determined to have a tree.

We shopped for the best bargain in trees, a string of lights, garland, some ornaments, and the ever popular tinsel (Wonder when tinsel will come back in vogue?)  Got it all home and put up our tree.  Our first tree and we thought it looked grand! 

Since then we have had many trees – scotch pines, white pines, Frazier firs, and then a number years back we switched to a fake tree.  Hated to give up the real trees – loved the aroma, but got tired of cleaning up the needles and also finding a place to dispose of what remained.  I think age played a part also.

Decorating the tree is a personal challenge to have a different look each year from the previous year.  I don’t believe in the last 35 years we have decorated the tree the same two years running.  We may have repeated at some time or another, but probably some years apart.  But as a result, we have quite a stash, a large closet full, of ornaments and all the rest in many colors and sizes.  One would think we wouldn’t have to buy more, but it never fails that the tree decorating scheme for the current year will include something we don’t have on hand.

For this year, the tree is up and decorated and only had to buy a few new items.  And we think it looks grand!