Senior Citizen Christmas Tree
It was going to be another one of those vicarious Christmases; You know, the kind old people have whose families are all grown and live in distant cities. I was not planning to get any decorations because who would see them, anyway? Besides, there were enough holiday parties for senior citizens in our community. Our clubs and church made lovely dinners with tables beautifully festooned, and entertainment galore.
I thought fondly of when my parents, who had made such a fine fuss on this special holiday, stopped buying tall fir trees and settled for a small artificial one in their golden years. It did seem a bit sad, but I could see their point - no small children or even teens to show that Jesus' birth was a very special thing.
But something happened this year, totally unexpected, to be sure. I became a great grandmother. My grandson changed our whole family scenario - my daughter became a grandmother - that was quite a concept. I had to adjust my position in the family, and rather quickly. Now I was even further from the middle of the whole thing, even though I had been the sole provider for the kids when my husband died. Now I was no longer in the mix, or so I thought.
One fine evening, my grandson and his new family came over bearing a small, but real fir tree. It had a shiny red stand and fit perfectly on a round table I had used for a sewing machine. At first I had no idea where or how I would decorate it, but I knew it would need some lights. Tinsel, popcorn and angel hair did not seem like anything I would get again. Nor did those red, blue and gold balls seem to fit the bill.
This was a special tree. It would need special decorating skills. Soon I found the perfect set of white lights, just long enough to cover the tree. Then, little by little, out came the hot glue gun, the pearls, the small wooden animals and figures in bright colored holiday garb that I had collected some years ago.
Rings and baubles from mismatched jewelry fit perfectly on the branches, as did acorns and pine cones a family member sent me from a northern area. I touched them up with some gold paint and then added tiny red velvet bows for added color.
Somehow this lovely Christmas scene came together so beautifully that I am still in awe of how this year is coming to an end for me not as some nostalgic reminder of how it used to be, but rather rejoicing that I am still here, still able to look at the Christmas tree with bright and admiring eyes, just like I did when I was a little girl.
Merry Christmas everyone, and don't forget - it's never too late, whether it be for a decorated Christmas tree or any other wish. If it can come true for me, it can come true for you, too.
