How will you be adorned for the holidays?
Why do we decorate Christmas trees?
The most common types of Christmas trees—the Firs (Balsam, Douglas, and Fraser), the Pines (Scotch, White and Colorado Blue), and the Spruces (Norway and Blue)—are already stunning and majestic as they stand in fields or on mountainsides unadorned. With branches of various length and shades of green and blue, needles either pointy or smooth—the trees are magnificent gifts of nature.
A field of Christmas trees dusted with newly-fallen snow is about as glorious a winter scene as one could find. Mother Nature is nothing if not impeccable in her own sense of design.
So it all makes me wonder: Why decorate an already perfect, exquisite creation? Why do we have to embellish trees with lights, ribbon, tinsel, and brightly-colored ornaments in all shapes and sizes. Why the need to “dress up” something that’s already a perfectly fine example of a tree?
The answer, as I see it, is an easy one. We decorate Christmas trees to make them more colorful and festive for the holidays. Ornamental lights turn a Christmas tree into a twinkling, blinking version of itself. And for many, decorating the Christmas tree is a family tradition.
I’ve been thinking, too, about how the style and colors we choose in decorating a tree are an expression of our own creativity and personality. In a way, then, we’re presenting a bit of ourselves on our tree with the ornaments we choose … a thought which leads me to ask this:
Especially during this time of year, could we adorn ourselves with a different kind of ornament?
Could we “wear” ornaments that show the very best of us … ornaments such as extra kindness, patience, gentleness, forgiveness, and tolerance? Could we give a little and let go of a lot? Could we put the best of ourselves on display over the holidays so that those around us can experience a bright, shining version of who we are inside?
Please know that you, my friend, are already a gift, a miracle, an utterly remarkable being without lifting a finger, saying a word, or achieving a thing. Just like the unadorned tree on a mountainside, the you who God created is already someone of beauty and intelligence. The essential you cannot be improved upon.
In music an ornament is an embellishing note. It’s not part of the essential melody or harmony, but serves only to add a little something extra to the main lines of music.
So, I speak of these personal embellishments not as qualities that make us whole, but as graces that complete us in the most loving of ways.
And yet, we also recognize and understand that not everyone among us can be more of anything, especially more joyful, this time of year. The challenges, stresses, and grief people feel throughout the year can feel particularly acute over the holidays. Many of us have been there and understand how hard it can be to pretend “joyful” when, instead, we feel sorrowful. May God bless you in a special way if that’s where you are this December. Please know—You are loved here. You are cherished here. I pray that over these holidays you will experience the joy of someone reaching out to you with gentleness, kindness, good will, and good cheer.
I send my love and thanks to each of you who have signed onto my newsletter; many thanks, in advance, to those who sign on as we head into the new year. I’m so very grateful to all for your time and for your interest in what I express in this space. Please let me know if there are any particular topics you’d like me to write about.
This will be my last newsletter of 2019; I’ll be back in January. Till then, please take good care.
Happy Holidays!
How will you be adorned?
(Top Photo Credit: Dan Paul on Unsplash)