Christmas Ornaments
Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall
–Psalm 55:22 NIV
We moved from one house to another this year and fortunately
the boxes of Christmas decorations had not made its way from the garage to the
attic yet. I thought about getting an early start on my decorating. We put up
the tree and then it sat there for a few days, maybe even a week with just the
lights. In years past I would have had the help of our children to trim the
tree. There would be hot chocolate, half- eaten candy canes strewn about, my
husband mumbling about the tangled lights and Andy Williams Christmas songs
playing on the stereo as the dogs and cat fought for a place to lay under the
tree. If it sounds chaotic, it was. But, I admit I miss all the commotion of
this treasured family pastime.
What happened to the spirit of Christmas this year? I just
couldn’t seem to get motivated in my new surroundings. Finally, we looked at
the barren tree and decided we had to decorate it. One by one, we opened the
boxes and the memories came flooding back to us. The special ornaments like the
plastic Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus that my daughter “borrowed” from my parents tree
and placed on our tree when she was four years old. Then there was the stuffed
Easter bunny that has been on our tree ever since my son realized the
connection between Christmas and Easter and decided that we should celebrate
both holidays at once, or at least on our tree. The glittered gum balls from
grade school along with the hand painted ornaments we made one year when we
were feeling crafty were placed carefully on the tree. The tree was filling up
with over 30 years of memories. I couldn’t help but think long and hard of
where we had been and where we were going. Our life was spread out on that
tree. There was the little white church that I bought for the tree the year I
went through a serious illness. There were the ornaments that my husband and I
gave to each other when times were lean and they were our only gift to each
other. The handmade cloth stuffed ornaments that have lasted over two decades still
looked good as new. But I couldn’t say the same for the featherless bird
(thanks to the cat) that has had a place of honor on the tree for years.
Standing in the distance, gazing at the tree in all its
years of memories and beauty, I was left with a wonderful thought of gratefulness
that we have been blessed through good times and bad, through ups and downs. The
memories of Christmases long ago continues to live on in the beauty of each
ornament. The spirit of Christmas that I was trying so hard to find was there
all along. It’s in the love of God and family. Love is at the heart of
Christmas and God’s love remains the same even when there is change all around
us. He is the One we count on, the One
we look to and the One we have faith in. The One who sustains us. God is there
always, standing beside us in all times.
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