Traditions. Family. Friends. Gatherings. Gift Giving. All are key elements to the Holiday season! Our family celebrates Christmas, which is my favorite holiday of the year. I love decorating the tree, singing Christmas carols, gathering with our friends, spending time with family and searching for that perfect gift!
It is so easy to get caught up in the hubbub of the pre-Christmas festivities and forget to take in the joy of the season. When I find myself getting a bit “crazy”, I like to pour a glass of wine, turn on some Christmas music and stare at the Christmas tree which contains so many ornaments that we have collected over the years. These ornaments consist of places we have visited throughout the years, home-made ornaments from our children, nieces and nephews, and special ornaments from friends and family.
My son has an ornament that my mom gave him on his first Christmas. It was a recording device where she wished him a very Merry Christmas on his very first Christmas. Mom is gone now, but that ornament helps to make her very present – just hearing the sound of her voice.
I love the homemade ornaments from young children in our family – but now, those young children are grown adults with their own children. My, how time flies!
My favorite ornament is one from my childhood, made for me by a family friend when I was a small child. It is a pink velvet ball with white lace and pearls. I remember digging that out of the ornament box when I was growing up. I liked to put it in a very prominent spot on the tree – so it was always the first ornament I hung. While it is beautiful, it reminds me of the woman who made it for me, which leads me into many memories of her with my family.
Every ornament has significance. Maybe it was homemade, maybe the ornament itself is nothing special, but it was given to us by someone very special, or maybe it reminds us of a family trip we took. Regardless of the significance of each ornament, they all combine to create very special memories…therefore, I like to consider our Christmas Tree as our Memory Tree!!
I hope that this holiday season generates special memories for you as well. And I hope that you are able to slow down and enjoy the traditions of this special occasion. Whether you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah, we at Nelson Walley Real Estate hope that you have a season filled with joy, laughter, traditions, and especially beautiful memories!!