Why Decorate?

Decorate or don't Decorate its a personal choice. 

For some it is a burden. The commercials flood the radio waves, the TVs, and every store shouts CHRISTMAS at every turn. For some it feels like Christmas has missed its intended purpose. Christmas is not a Currier and Ives Scene, it can sometimes be messy, it can sometimes be wonderful.

An elderly friend in the south, told me she gave up on decorating years ago.

Her life had changed significantly. Let's just say there were tragedies in her life.

Similarly, my mother decided a few years back that she wouldn't decorate anymore. She questioned the point of it and often mentioned her dislike for Christmas.

When I was young, my mother would decorate extravagantly. Outdoor lights, a real tree, delicate glass ornaments, and those large, colorful bulbs were all part of the tradition. We joyfully threw tinsel over the tree. After we stopped believing in Santa Claus, she would pile gifts under the tree as she accumulated them.... which brought us immense excitement.

As we grew older, she opted for a tabletop tree to avoid the mess of fallen needles and the need for watering. It was neater and more convenient.

Children grow up and sometimes move away. Life unfolds in unexpected ways.

Christmas occurs during the darkest time of the year, often intensifying feelings of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). The darkness, the family memories, whether joyful or painful, are very real.

Isolation is a reality for many, as are sad and enduring memories.

My mother-in-law, however, never ceased her Christmas decorating. Post-Thanksgiving, I would help her retrieve decorations from storage. She would supervise from her chair as I replaced fall decorations with Christmas ones, set up the pre-lit tree, decorated her balcony, and arranged fairy lights, a wooden goose, and her miniature village.

Her apartment would transform into a festive haven, complete with a 'feather' tree and vintage ornaments. You couldn't even reach for toilet paper without seeing a Yuletide decoration.

When my husband and I first met, he expressed his dislike for Christmas. He didn't want me to decorate. He'd spent a Christmas in Vietnam and it was not a happy time for him at all.

That didn't stop me. I first started out with his tiny 6" tree. 

Eventually, it wasn't about Christmas so much as I wanted to light up the dark cold nights with colors and a sense of warmth. It was also a chance to deep clean the house and move stuff around. 

The Christmas season became a reason to have fun to...

Display toys and let the toys play.
Decorate the dog.
Take photos.
Be surprised, take joy in imagination...

I do it for me as generally I am the only audience for my decorating. It is like creating art that keeps transforming.

At least I have a reason now to 'play'. 

If I can make December playful with the cold days and dark nights, I'm happy. After all. No one who knows me thinks it is weird when I turn the living room into a place of play.
The toys take over as they should.

It even makes Grumpy Gus smile when he walks into the room and sees Teddy Bears doing naughty things one day and the next they are sitting quietly looking sheepish.

Decorating or making the decision not to is just fine. We can be moved to do it or not.

It is such a personal preference.

For many, Christmas can be a source of stress. I often spend Christmas Eve thinking about all the times I'd call my Father late on Christmas Eve. He'd ask me to describe our Christmas Tree. I'd tell him about it and sip a glass of wine. We'd laugh, we'd chat and I'd sit in the dark and tell him tall tales and he would do likewise.

For that, I am grateful for Christmas and the memories it brings to me each year.

This year I have 3 ugly chairs to consider for the Christmas Tree Chair. Which one will it be??