THE TREE

One holiday season my parents decided to chop down a tree that was growing on the side of our modest home, for our Christmas tree. I don’t know what prompted that decision. It was clearly more work than picking one up in a lot. And my parents were not likely to all of a sudden go rogue on the most sacred of holiday traditions. Years later, I wondered if the tree was diseased and had to be cut down anyway. But my parents are no longer with us to ask and my sisters are just as clueless as I am. So that little mystery will never get solved. 

Once they announced the plan, I was skeptical their little scheme would work. I have since researched that the tree was probably an Italian Cypress. It was tall and skinny, unlike the full trees we were used to bringing in to decorate. How in the world would that do? Our Christmas would be sad if our tree didn’t measure up. And it’s not as if the bar was set very high. We didn’t have a large space or a tall ceiling and there was always a budget to consider. 

But when you’re a kid, a decent Christmas tree in the small corner of your living room is key. It’s like Santa being there or at least a promise that he will be there soon – even if you know that Santa’s handwriting is a dead ringer for your mom’s distinctive cursive. Besides, if you pretended to believe, there’s a little magic in the air and a higher spring in your step and more importantly, you might get more stuff, even if it is badly wrapped in the same paper that’s been in the broom closet since last Christmas.

The tree cutting ceremony finally arrived. My dad, saw in hand, went to work in the front yard. And I must interject here that although my dad had a good number of tools in the garage, I was not used to seeing him use any. Some of the neighbors were out now, giving him a hand. They must have seen the struggle.

And I was not happy. Didn’t anyone care about what I thought? AN UGLY SKINNY TREE THAT COMES FROM YOUR YARD AND IS NOT EVEN A REAL CHRISTMAS TREE WILL RUIN EVERYTHING! 

The space in our living room was cleared and my mom and dad had to MacGyver a stand using a big metal bucket, yet another embarrassment. But in spite of my wailing, the tree was now free and on its way to the front door. It took some doing, but they wrangled it through and in an instant, something even more mysterious happened. That toothpick of a tree on the side our home, became a massive force to be reckoned with, once inside. 

It barely fit in the room, even after more cutting and trimming. Now that was fun. I wish we could have kept it there forever if it wasn’t for the super sticky, messy sap it left behind. 

Why not surprise yourself this holiday season with something new to ruffle the feathers off tradition? Hey we’ve been dancing with new rules for over a year now. It might be just the ticket – again! 

Photo by Kristina Paukshtite from Pexels