This year, for the first time in as long as I can remember, we didn’t put up a Christmas tree.
I grew up with a Christmas tree every year, tinsel, and all. Today’s collage photos are from my childhood Christmas with my friends (note the photo on the right the year my first friend and I were into wearing black wigs ☹). A tree is in every photo.
I had left home by the time my mother stopped putting up a tree. It just became too much work for her, although she continued to put out indoor holiday decorations.
I didn’t consciously decide to not put up a tree this year. I always put the lights and tree up on Thanksgiving weekend so I have 4+ weeks to enjoy them. This year, the lights went up as planned, but not the tree. We live in a SMALL house and had a family gathering the first weekend in December. We don’t have room for both a tree and a room full of people, so the tree lost. Then we did a little traveling and just had a houseguest.
There went much of December and I decided it was too late to go through the ‘work’ of putting up a tree for such a short period of time.
Before you wonder if I have totally gone Grinch, I haven’t:
The outdoor lights and wreaths are in place and the Santa windsock is flying. The lights are down a string, but still seem to do the trick.
Indoors, I have strings of battery-operated lights, 2 poinsettias, and a windowsill with lighted Glassybabies.
And we finally got our Christmas cards in the mail on Monday.
Note: Is it just me or are fewer Christmas cards arriving every year? I think many of us share pictures and updates on social media during the year and cards seem a bit redundant.
My intention wasn’t to simplify the holidays, but not putting up a tree certainly made things easier. Here is an article on simplifying Christmas. One of their suggestions is to focus on the tree and skip the other decorations.
My friends tell me that not putting up a tree this year is probably a ‘slippery slope’.
I must admit that my favorite things are the outdoor and indoor lights and the poinsettias. To me they are plenty festive!
Time will tell if this is just one year without a tree or if this is a ‘treeless’ holiday tradition in the making.
Maybe this is not the Christmas to ask for everything we want, Linus. Maybe this year we just need to be thankful for what we have.
Christmas with the Clauses
Allene
Travels with Allene 
This has been a debate for several years now. When my mother passed away I didn’t feel like a tree for three years. The last couple of years we have put up the tree and a few lights, poinsettias and wreaths on the outside doors. This year given my Covid diagnosis and travel, I have had limited time to see the tree. Looking at the ornaments from various trips around the world are always fun to see again. Tom’s mom recorded a holiday message years ago and we listen when we get out the decorations and put the tree up. I must say, I think it will be a debate each year. I’m always eager to put everything away as soon as Christmas is over so we go into the New Year all back to normal. I’m assuming many senior families debate the traditions of past years, not just us. Happy New Year!
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I agree. I think it will be a year-by-year decision on the tree. Get well soon!
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