Christmas Trees and Christmas Decorations, Past and Present

Decorating the Christmas tree is an essential part of preparing for the most wonderful time of the year. In addition to the tree, there are plenty of other decorations to be put up around the house, and for some families, outside the house, to get into the Christmas Spirit.

There have been plenty of decorations growing up that I remember more than others. There have been decorations to remind the family that Christmas was drawing close. Most of these were on the tree, but there were other decorations in my house as well as houses of relatives that have stood out over the years for me.

Past Christmas Decorations

Growing up, I remember a neighbor's house that was all decked out for the season. Lights on the bushes and two gigantic candles flanking the front steps of their home. Our house was on a one way street, so we always went by that house on our way home. When I was older, my room gave me a nice view of houses on the street behind us that had lights outside their homes on bushes. I called it my own little Christmas movie, and I was particularly grateful to the neighbors across the fence who had candles in the back window because that meant I got to see more lights. It was a pleasant sight to take in before having to wake up and face the tortures and brutalities of my teachers.

A house ready for Christmas.

My grandparents had a great tree at their house, but what really stood out to me was the big Santa Claus they had on their front door. I loved that decoration because it reminded me of who would soon be visiting and what he would be leaving behind.

As a child, I think I was reminded of the big morning every time I saw Christmas decorations. It gave you hope that Christmas Morning would come no matter how painful it was to wait. Seeing Christmas decorations seemed to make a house or a yard look that much better, especially at night.

My family also got ready for the Christmas Season. We didn't have a real tree. We had a fake one that got pulled out of the basement on the first weekend of December. When I was a boy, I preferred having a fake Christmas tree. It could stay up longer and when Christmas was over, we put it back in the basement. There was no need to go out every year and buy a new one. To me, that was a waste of money. A fake Christmas tree that dutifully waited for the next Christmas was bought and paid for once. It paid for itself with its durability and reusability. In time, I have come around to the idea of a real tree in my home. It gives the room a nice fragrance. Plus, there is the excitement of going out and picking a new tree and bringing it home.

Rigging up the Lights

Decorating the tree was also fun. My dad would test all the lights before stringing them up on the tree. I found this to be a waste of time. Just string them up, and if one was out we could replace it while the lights were on the tree. I never understood his illogical fallacies. My mom would go to the store to buy new lights to replace the old ones. One house we lived in was around the corner from Osco. I would impatiently wait for her to come home with new lights for my dad.

The candy cane melts in the hot chocolate and adds a nice little flavor to the hot beverage. Simple and refreshing. Suck it, Starbucks.

Once the lights were finally set up, we could go about the important business of trimming the tree. Our Christmas tree ornaments were wrapped in newspaper to protect them during the rest of the year. I loved unwrapping the newspaper around the ornaments, especially the ones that had the comics and sports pages around them.

Our Christmas Ornaments

Pope John Paul II on
the Christmas tree.

We had ornaments that had special, sentimental meaning. We had an ornament with Pope John Paul II on it. That went on the front and center of the tree. Ornaments made by me and my siblings at school and day care; Reindeer made out of clothespins, "garland" from red and green construction paper that was glued into rings and made into a chain. We made clay angels at our daycare, baked them in the oven, and glued a picture of our face on it to take home and hang on the tree. In Boy Scouts, I pinned red and green beads on a foam ball for another simple yet profound decoration for our humble, festive Tannenbaum.

Also on our Christmas tree were candy canes. They were usually the last to go on the tree, purchased a day or two later. These candy canes would serve as a decoration and also as a little treat to eat while watching Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, or some other Christmas special on television.

Our Christmas Tree Today

Today, my wife and children have our own decorations that we have accumulated over the years. My wife has ornaments from New York City that she purchased before we met; Ornaments of people skating at Rockefeller Center. There are Christmas ornaments bought at department stores and ornaments made by our own children at school. We have ornaments bought at places we visited during Christmas seasons of the past. Some ornaments have the names of children who have stayed with us during previous Christmases.

I buy candy canes to put on our tree. Sometimes they are eaten on their own. Sometimes I like to put one in a cup of hot chocolate. The candy cane melts in the hot chocolate and adds a nice little flavor to the hot beverage. Simple and refreshing. Suck it, Starbucks.

Our tree is lit. Bulbs shine on ornaments made by little ones or bought when our family was together on a certain day enjoying some free time we had. Some decorations were made by little hands while some were bought with the help of little minds. All of them have their own story to tell, and we're reminded of each story when they go up on our Christmas tree.