But GAH, the commercialism. It's bad. Worse yet is that it starts BEFORE HALLOWEEN!
Buy! Buy! Buy! Spend! Spend! Spend!
I like buying a good gift as much as the rest of them. I love the look on someone's face when I can give them something that they really love.
I married a bit of a Scrooge. He likes Christmas alright. (He really is one of the best present givers I've ever met.
He's been harassing me for years about my love for cutting down Christmas trees. "Are you SURE you don't want a fake tree this year?"
"Do you KNOW, $40 will feed a kid in Africa for a MONTH!"
Every time, I glare at him and say, "NO." No, no, NO. NO. That's my favorite tradition. The tramping through the field in the cold. The fighting over who picked the prettiest tree. The pine needles all over the--
Wait a sec.
I caved. I told him that we didn't have to do a real Christmas tree this year.
I had been reading through blogs and came across this entry in Vitafamilae. I was struck by how lovely their tree turned out. Then I read their reasoning and was sold.
So that's what I suggested. A bare tree.
He heard "free" and he was sold.
So that's what we did.
And in my opinion? It couldn't be lovelier.
May you challenge yourself this holiday season to find ways to change, to serve, and to love.
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Isn't it pretty?
Posts
Excellent. This is a good reminder for me.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jen
Gorgeous!! You did a great job with the lights! And you'll love not having the needles!
ReplyDeleteThat's fun. We have a fake because of Anny's terrible allergy... oh, and it's incredibly easy to put up and take down. We hope to get it done today.
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas!
Neat idea...and kudos to you for embracing the concept. But...uhm...there will be no naked tress in my house. Ever. That's one Christmas tradition I will never ever give up ;-) I look forward to our 2,250 light tree ALL YEAR!!!
ReplyDeleteThat is a wonderful idea! We switched over to a fake tree after Phabian's first Christmas when we realize he was just as sensitive to pine as i was and we both ended up with snotty noses and a cough. I dont think i could ever go back now.
ReplyDeleteThat looks so cool!
ReplyDeleteFun! Where did you get it? Your backyard? :) I'm not sure there's anywhere around here we could cut down a hardwood... legally of course. ;)
ReplyDeleteLove it! Looks cool, great reasoning.
ReplyDeleteBut, I'm with Tiffany. This is one tradition I am unwilling to give up.
When we came in from church today Christopher said, "Mom, the living room smells wonderful!"
And, it does.
Thats really cool...but I also can't give up the real Christmas tree tradition. This year I even cut it down all by myself...well Tim held it for me while I cut :) Your tree looks great!
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, Jen! Thank you for sharing this! I'm right there with Shaun this year -it was really hard for me to spend the money for exactly the same reason. God's been moving in our hearts in a new way these past few months, and things have been different for us this year. Maybe the Boons will follow suit next year when it comes to our tree too - it looks beautiful!
ReplyDelete