Christmas magic

Saturday is a day for running errands; Cristy and I had a long list that mostly involved going to stores to purchase a few needed items and shop for furnishings for our new home. Some retailers have begun rearranging their floorspace to accommodate Christmas decorations, much to my delight! At one particular store, again to my delight, we even took a few minutes to select a handful of tree ornaments.

When I was a young girl, my mom made Christmas magical. She arranged table centerpieces, decorations for the foyer, gathered festive collections of pine cones, played holiday music on the piano, made scrumptious goodies and decorated our tree beautifully. She added the prettiest of touches to wrapped presents and Christmas cards. The house was fragrant with cedar boughs, cinnamon stick bundles and freshly baked cookies. None of our decorations were elaborate or expensive. What mattered most was the excitement and the joy that she shared.

Mommy let me make pretty paper chains to decorate my room and gave me extra pieces of garland for a touch of sparkle. I loved everything sparkly, glittery, twinkling. Every time I walked into my bedroom, I felt a fresh surge of joy. Today I have the same feelings about Christmas decorations. It is the one time of year when more is definitely more: sparkly, glittery, twinkling. I have been accumulating decorations for many years, so there is nothing very uniform in terms of an overall holiday theme. Just pretty. As I open each box of ornaments carefully packed away from the year before, I feel the same excitement from my childhood.

2009 will be my first year to share the holiday with Cristy in our own home. And there is so much of it to decorate. My collection of decorations that last year, in my small house seemed abundant will undoubtedly now appear spare. But over time, the collection will grow to fill the space. Each year we’ll add just a tiny bit more.

I am secretly hoping that I can convince mommy to come visit soon and make a gorgeous centerpiece for the dining room table. It would be the crowning glory of my collection and a perfect way to create the best possible Christmas energy in our home. Better than Santa himself.