March 29, 2024

Column: ‘O Christmas Tree’

Christmas is officially here! OK, so it’s been around for most of the month, sometimes longer depending on who you are. I’m not one to start decorating before large quantities of turkey and mashed potatoes have been consumed.

This year, I’ve gotten an extra dose of Christmas cheer. I helped my boyfriend, Tim, put up his Christmas tree for the first time. And in return, he helped me with mine. Now the two decorations are hard to compare. My small apartment only allows for a tiny tree. As for Tim’s place, he has a house with a nice size living room and a tree to match.

Tim’s tree is one of those pre-lit trees that come in three parts. You start with the base and unfold the branches to make room for the next three pieces. That was my first job in the tree setting-up process, not that it was a huge undertaking.

When the first part was unfolded, Tim set the next part in place, plugged the cords together and I set about unfolding this section. The tree was already lit up so I could see if any bulbs needed replaced as I straightened the branches. Luckily, all the bulbs appeared to be shining bright.

Unfortunately, when the last section popped into place, I found one bulb toward the top that was out. Tim didn’t seem too concerned about it. When he fitted the angel to the top of the tree, you could barely tell a light was missing. It was one of the coolest tree toppers I’ve seen. The LED lights would fade in and out of different colors.

Tim wrapped the tree with garland, and I placed colorful bulbs on nearly every branch available. Tim swiped two of the bulbs to hang on the deer antlers mounted above his TV — even the buck was getting in the holiday spirit.

We placed wreaths on two of his doors and stepped back to admire our work. Our first Christmas tree together looked pretty good.

The next week, we set about decorating my small living space. I dug my box of decorations out of my small storage locker and took down my “regular” decorations before Tim got to my place. This way we could make the most of the time together instead of having him watch me dust something I should have done awhile ago.

Anyway, I pulled the tree out of the box first, presenting my 2 foot tree to Tim with one hand. I pointed to where the tree would rest for the month of December (and maybe some of January, but who knows). Next came the small, 35-bulb light string which Tim wrapped around the branches as I prepared the extension cord to reach from the outlet to the shelf.

Then Tim elected to hand me the bulbs and other knick-knacks that fill my little tree. After most of the branches were taken, I got out a few ornaments that were too heavy to put on the tree but make for good decorations around the base.

We both worked to get my Christmas home and tea set displayed on the shelves above the tree, adding a little extra cheer in my limited space. The final step was putting my manger scene on my entertainment center surrounded by other Christmas decor that didn’t fit on the shelves.

I must have had the cheesiest grin on my face because Tim kept saying how happy I looked while we decorated. I loved sharing those moments with him. Christmas is truly one of the best times of the year.

Contact Pam Rodgers
at prodgers@newtondailynews.com