Our youngest son and wife are off with prayers for their safe journey home. I’ve turned to “undressing” the 2015 Christmas tree of its finery. Our tree is not a glitzy, glamorous tree filled with big shiny balls and glittery ribbon. Rather it is a tree of all Christmas pasts filled with ornaments gathered through the years representing the ever-changing moments in our life and the lives of our children.

Our first ornaments were hand-made. Being short on funds we went to the dime store and purchased craft items that turned into Angels floating on clouds, Santa Claus, and other shiny orbs. Only the Santa remains.

One of my favorites is an Angel of gold paper and a white doily for wings made by our oldest son when he was in kindergarten. Today it is a tattered Angel but no less loved. This ornament was the first of many other ornaments made by the children while in school and cub scouts. The last “school-made” ornament to hang on our tree was crafted by our granddaughter Mollie last year.

Cherished ornaments include egg white and sugar ornaments that my mother and I purchased from a gentleman in south St. Louis County. These ornaments were made using wooden molds brought to the United States from Germany. The ornaments are fragile works of art.

Through the years we have added to our home-made ornaments and been given many more from family and friends. There is a wooden ornament painted by my mother, a little paper church with stained glass windows made by my brother, and vintage ornaments that hung on my husband’s childhood trees.

We have decorated 48 Christmas trees. Each year, as the ornaments are hung on the tree, there is anticipation and hope for another Christmas to be celebrated and remembered. And each year as the ornaments are taken from the tree there is a little bit of nostalgia as they are put to bed for another year. 

Our parents decorated their Christmas trees and the circle of life has gone on as we and our children have decorated ours. Merry Christmas to all and let the memory of your Christmas warm your heart for the year to come.