Christmas Trees

Posted On December 24, 2020

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How lovely are thy branches!
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How lovely are thy branches!

Christmas Trees of my Childhood

As a child, I loved our Christmas trees because they had colored lights on them. I mean, what child doesn’t think twinkling lights are beautiful. Yet, I really don’t remember being very excited about the trees. What I do remember isn’t all that pleasant

• sharp pricks to the fingers from the branches,
• itchy angel hair to cover the lights and
• tinsel sticking to everything but the branches!!

Seriously, you hear people say they long for the good old days when times were simpler. They obviously aren’t thinking about Christmas trees.

Since real trees can quickly become a fire hazard, we couldn’t get the tree until a few days before Christmas. We would drive our truck around the farm looking for just the right tree. Since they are called evergreens, one might think they are ALWAYS green in color. That is definitely not the case! When we did find the greenest one, it often had a crooked trunk. After Daddy would cut the tree down with a saw, we’d haul it home. We’d leave a trail of leaves, twigs and dirt from the door to the living room. Often the bottom would need trimming by an axe to fit in the stand. This involved sticky tree sap and scratches on the hands, arms and face.

Then came the decorations. We had large multi-colored lights that got extremely hot. We had to cover them with angel hair to protect the branches from getting too hot and catching on fire. It created a nice soft glow, but angel hair was made of spun glass. Handling it would often result in cuts to the skin and would make me itch.

We usually didn’t hang many ornaments because Mother said the prettiest tree she ever saw was in Hatton where someone only had lights and tinsel. She explained how they put all of the tinsel on the tree by draping multiple strands over a pencil and then carefully placing them on a branch. These steps were repeated until their tree was covered with precisely placed tinsel.

I imagine their tree was beautiful. But, have you ever worked with that clingy stuff? It has a mind of its own. It sticks to hair, clothes and anything else it comes into close contact with. We had to keep our distance from the tree because a human drew the tinsel off the tree like a magnet. Mother never got the tree of her dreams. We’d start out doing it but quickly give up and just throw the strands on.

Christmas Trees Before Kids

After we were married, not much changed in regards to the Christmas trees, other than the lights. Modern technology allowed for smaller bulbs that didn’t get nearly as hot so angel hair wasn’t required. But, these new lights tangled easily and, if one light burned out, the entire strand quit working. Finding the faulty bulb was a tedious task.

My husband and I still drove around the farm looking for the greenest tree. Obviously, by the earliest one I have pictured, we were not always successful in finding a green one.

Also, because of our meager budget, buying beautiful ornaments was out of the question. No big deal though, because what could be more meaningful than popping corn and sewing it together to make garland? Yes, the good old days where you got to stick a needle in a kernel of popped corn and hope enough stayed intact to make a pretty little bauble for your strand. You might wonder how much popcorn it takes to make multiple strands. The answer is, TOO MUCH. Much more than I was willing to sew together, anyway.

So, those trees weren’t much to look at either. I do remember one year my husband surprised me by going out and getting a pine tree. That was a real treat over the cedar that required wearing gloves while decorating it to avoid injuries.

I was beyond amazed when he brought that pine tree home. He explained that it truly was a beautiful tree but was too big for our house. He had only brought home the top tiers. The result was a very large round tree with three (well it might have been four) tiers of branches. There was LOTS of trunk showing between the tiers. It was the funniest tree we ever had and I’m sad I don’t have a picture of it.

Christmas Trees when our Children were Little

I’m not sure where I got the idea that taking the kids to find a tree would be fun. Maybe it was when I found an actual Christmas tree farm. Or maybe, I’d started watching Hallmark movies. Instead of remembering fun family times though, I remember

• If I liked the tree, my husband declared the trunk to be too crooked
• If my husband liked the tree, I declared that it was too tall
• If the kids liked the tree, it was too small and
• Everyone was usually too cold to enjoy the hunt!

I do have a picture where the weather seems delightful and I wonder why I don’t remember that day.

The kids never were as excited as I was about decorating the tree. I have to take responsibility for that. Just like my mother, I wanted the tree to look perfect. Thus, I was probably too bossy and was known to rearrange the ornaments they had hung. It took me several years to realize that it was more fun with their help regardless of how it looked.

When the kids got older, we started buying our trees from the local football team. Usually, they were very pretty pine trees. But one year I remember that the trees had been spray painted green because they were barely green!

Christmas Trees of the Empty Nesters

These days I only put up an artificial tree. It is not nearly as messy. I can put it up early and take it down late without worrying it will catch on fire. Besides, after all these years, I’ve found out I’m allergic to cedar!!

Today, my tree looks much different from many years ago. My husband brings in the tree and helps me put it together. I fluff out the branches, a task that takes about an hour and makes my back really hurt. Next comes the task of untangling the lights, replacing bad strands (hoping they match the ones I already have) and then putting them on the tree.

I opt for small twinkling strands of red and strands of white lights. I then add red garland and red, silver and white ornaments. I prefer decorations that don’t obscure the actual tree. I think my trees are much prettier than in years past but decorating a tree by myself isn’t particularly enjoyable.

Hallmark Christmas Movies or National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation?

After reading this, maybe you understand why I don’t really long for the good old days. I would also much rather watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation than any Hallmark Christmas movies. It’s just so relatable.

I start laughing as soon as the Griswold family begins their trek to find the perfect tree all the way through the tree catching fire and a squirrel jumping out of the replacement tree.

Just like Mother and Clark, I have always wanted the perfect tree, but I’ve learned it can only be perfect if it is surrounded by my family.

http://National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation http://Hallmark Christmas movies

O Christmas Tree

Admittedly, I have difficulty relating to the first verse of O Christmas Tree

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How lovely are thy branches!
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How lovely are thy branches!

But, I get the third verse, although I’ve yet to figure out how all these words go with the tune!

Let us remember in our gift giving and merriment
With our family and friends and loved ones
The real and true meaning of Christmas.
The birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

What are Your Christmas Tree Memories?

Please share your Christmas Tree memories with me and my readers.

I’ve included pictures of my decorations from this year, just in case you think I’m a Scrooge. I’m really not. In fact, I think I’ll go right now and sit in the glow of my tree and watch a Hallmark movie…or I could watch Clark and Cousin Eddie again. Those next door neighbors just crack me up. And the great aunt and her cat. And the jello mold. Snots, the dog. The bubbling sewer drain. I could go on and on!

Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones.

UPDATE – I edited this post today, December 8, 2024. The original post was written a few years ago.

This year, I put my tree up in early October just before we headed to our winter home in Florida. Now I won’t have that task when we return next week to be with our family.

I put up a small tree in our “tiny house” in Florida.

Whatever type of tree you have, I hope it gives you great joy this Christmas season.