I love Christmas trees. I can feel a sort of magic in their glow, a charm which has the power to revive my childish spirit, the one which still looks in wonder at the myriads colourful lights and baubles hanging from the branches. It also brings back memories of my past, the majority of which, I have to say, are indissolubly linked to my father. He loved this time of the year so much. Christmas decorations were his seasonal pastime and he was very meticulous in his creative act indeed. It took him days to study all the mechanisms of the nativity scene and find the best spot to place it, but he mostly excelled in making Christmas trees. They were real artworks. When I was a little girl I enjoyed watching him being intent in giving life to what I interpreted to be the spirit of Christmas. I loved it so much that when I became old enough I was happy to share this family tradition with him and in time I found myself preserving it for him. When I turned on the lights, the magic always worked as I could still see a joyful sparkle appear in his old dark eyes. It is no wonder that he decided to leave us on Christmas Day. It seems it couldn’t have been otherwise.
Yet, I never associate Christmas to sad events, and I would have more than one reason to do it, I can assure you, as for some strange twist of fate, catastrophes and tragedies have always happened during Christmas time in my life. And do you know why? Because that magic still has a hold on me. Every year when I start to make my Christmas tree the amazing charm of the lights seems to silence sorrows and bad memories are obscured for a while by their joyous twinkling. This is what I call the Christmas spirit.
Hence, I want to turn on the lights of my Christmas tree and share their powers with you, wishing you happiness and joy. At least for a while. Merry Christmas.
e-Tinkerbell 
Merry Xmas.
Thank you so much, Robert. Merry Christmas time to you!
i wish you a merry christmas dear stefy
Merci, my dear Julio. Wish you a great Christmas time.
grazie mille my dear stefy
Nadolig Llawen, Stefy, and thank you for sharing your memories and association – what a lovely way to remember your father. Buon Natale to you and yours.
After many years on WordPress I start running out of ideas at Christmas. So while I was wondering about which words I could choose for the seasonal wishes, the image of my father popped out to inspire me. Nadolig Llawen, Chris!
Cheers to the many joys of the season. Merry Christmas, Stefy … oh …. Buon Natale. 🙂
Thank you so much, Frank. Merry Christmas to you and your family!
noel
happy season
may thus so too
be your reason
for joy!
So, have a joyous Christmas time. Thanks a lot.
Merry Christmas and best wishes for the season🎄🎄 It’s wonderful to know that it continues to hold its magic for you despite tough times in the past.
It’s incredible, but it does. And I am not even the religious sort. It is just the power of the lights and nothing more. Have a great Christmas time, Mallika.
Thank you 🙂 I can see that happening. There is a magic about them.
Merry Christmas!🎄🎄🎄
Tanti cari auguri, Luisa.
🙏💝🙏💝🙏
Yes, the charm of a Christmas Tree links us to our imaginations, the fountain of humanity and humanitarianism. There’s a reason why pagan rituals survive, above and beyond commercialism and convention.
True, it is ancestral. We respond to lights as we interpret them as sources of life, joy, hope. have a great Christmas time, my dear.
Nice post and sentiment.
We used to decorate a lot (inside and outside) and over the years, accumulated many, many decorations. All were sold, gifted, or donated when we moved to Hawaii, and since then it’s not been convenient putting up displays.
But, I agree with you about the tree. I never saw it as a religious icon, just a festive display, and I, too, have great memories from when I was young (in Zugliano, near Udine).
I’m still incredulous of it (but confirmed it with my mother), but we had clip-on candle holders with real candles (on a real tree!) and even briefly lit them when we’d gather around the tree before going to Midnight Mass.
There shed less happy memories from those days, but the memory of the tree stuck in there even as I let many others go.
Merry Christmas, etb.
The midnight mass!! I have memories of this too. I was veeery young, as I definitely broke with the Roman Catholic church when I was 10.
Just curious . . . did you personally break with it, or as part of your family?
I ask because I ‘officially’ broke with it when I was 14 and stood my ground not wanting to go to mass (a big deal since my uncle was a priest). That was an interesting day, I tell you what!
While I was writing the reply to your previous comment I was just thinking ” I should tell this story, it is a nice one” and so I will. During holidays I have more to write. First post 2023. 😉
Bless you (now, there’s an old word), and bless you all.
Thank you, Michael. Have a great Christmas time.
Merry Christmas! 2️⃣5️⃣👼🎄🌟
Thank you, Cindy. Wish you a great Christmas time.
It is a fabulous, heartfelt description of this celebration, my dear Stefy. Thank you, and merry Christmas. I wish you, your beloved ones, and everyone on this earth a peaceful new year.🥰🤗🙏💖🦋
Thank you so much Aladin. Wish you a great Christmas time to you and your family.
Have a wonderful Holiday time filled with happiness and joy!
Thank you Carol. Wish you a wonderful Christmas time.
Reblogged this on Have We Had Help? and commented:
From Stefie with love XX
I forget the last time I had a Christmas tree, richly decorated Stefie. Living on my own has its drawbacks and priviledges….
I understand what you mean. Let’s put it in this way, you spare yourself the trouble of making it ( it took me 2 days to make mine) to avoid the sadness of dismatling it, don’t you? 😉