Thursday, December 22nd, 2011 12:21:55

Christmas Cheer

Christmas memories fill our Christmas tree. It stands in our living room, filled with white lights and ornaments. Our ornaments reflect the life of our family: varied and interesting, some old, some new, some precious and some common.

Some of the ornaments are from my childhood. Every Christmas, my parents used to give my sister Kathy and me an ornament. Our tree includes a flying angel, a Mrs. Claus on a rocker and a singing angel, to name a few. My mother gave me back these ornaments a few years ago, and as I pull them out each December, I remember the Christmases of my childhood.

My early Christmas memories all include trees that would barely stand up. I don’t know if it’s because the stands that we have now are better, or if we have straighter trees, but all of the Christmas trees from my childhood were secured by wires strung from the adjacent walls. It made stringing the lights a bit more difficult, but at least the tree remained standing. Except for the one year that my parents gave my sister and me kittens.