Every December the time comes to pull out the boxes from the basement and begin the mission of decorating for the holidays. For me though, trimming the tree is a journey back in time. As I pull them from their containers and unwrap them to put on the tree, many of the ornaments evoke a sentiment of past holidays. As I place each one on the tree I always take a moment to observe what recollection it brings to mind. Now that my parents are both gone these memories take on an even stronger significance.
I always look for three special red ones from long ago: an aluminum bell and two glass balls, one striped the other with an indentation. These remind me of my childhood. We had an aluminum tree decorated with several identical bells of different colors, and a variety of glass ornaments, of which only these survive. There were no lights strung on the tree; instead we had a color light wheel that would turn the silver tree red, blue, yellow then green as it rotated its disk. I remember sitting in a darkened room and watching the tree as it changed colors.
Those bulbs and that aluminum tree make me think of my Ludwick grandparents who would come and stay with us on Christmas Eve. Although I don’t recall the details, I’ve heard how my grandfather would get us kids awake very early in the morning to open presents, and of course we would be all excited that Santa came. Then after the presents were opened and the kids were wound up, he would go back to bed to take a nap.
Other adornments dear to me are ones that remind me of my parents. When I was about 11 years old they gave me a simple flat plastic angel, not quite two inches tall, fashioned like stained glass. I can’t remember any special reason why they gave it to me a few weeks before Christmas, but I’ve kept it all these years. Then there is the blue bell with “Mom and Dad” written on it that I gave to them the year I moved back home after living in West Virginia for two months where I had been a puppeteer. When I look at this ornament I’m reminded of the many loving things my parents did for me through the years and how supportive they were.
Over the years I’ve gathered a few treasures from relatives. Several plastic canvas ornaments hang from branches, and remind me of my Aunt Silveretta who crafted them. A gold Bloomsburg commemorative keep-sake, given to me by cousins Bob and Sharon when I travelled to Lycoming County to do some research in December 2002, reminds me of the terrible snow storm I drove into on the way there that turned the usual 4 hour trip into 12 hours. A crocheted blue pear with a bow made by my cousin Su and sent to Victor and me a few years ago adorns the tree. Recently, Victor’s sisters have also added to our collection: a few of the 12 days of Christmas from Ginger and a pair of Italian good luck figurines from Patty.
Then there is a maimed Captain America figure who suffered his injury in 2012. I was upstairs when I heard a terrible noise and came running down to the living to find our huge tree, which had taken 3 people to carry into the house, toppled over, lying in a heap on the living room floor. Ornaments had gone flying across the room, some had shattered, and a few, like Captain America, suffered a small calamity. There was no way I could manage to upright the tree by myself, so it lay there till Victor came home, and we struggled to get it standing again. We tied ropes to the tree and then weights to the ropes to keep it from falling over again. At the time I was distraught over the incident, but now I can look back and laugh about it.
These small baubles, like sign posts on a journey, assist me to fondly recall holidays past, and cherished family and friends—especially those no longer with us. In the years ahead new trinkets are sure to be added to the tree as Victor and I accumulate years together. Those future ornaments will become the reminiscences of how well we live our lives today. So when I am elderly I plan to unwrap those decorations and celebrate each Christmas by remembering my years with happiness, love and joy. May your reflections be as merry. Happy Holidays!
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