We love our Christmas tree in all its splendor! Generally we have
always brought it up from the basement after all of the other Christmas
decorations have been carefully placed, and I have lots of them, but this year
I decided that we would put it up first and I’m surprised how much more we’ve
enjoyed it. I think I may have started a new Christmas time tradition at our
house.
Christmas trees have a long and varying history of tradition. The
custom of decorating a Christmas tree actually started in Germany as early as
the 15th century. They have traditionally been evergreen trees such
as spruce, pines, or fir but I was surprised to find out that artificial trees
were already used in Germany during the 19th century due to
deforestation in that area. At that time they were often made out of wood and
goose feathers versus our more familiar contemporary PVC trees.
When I was growing up in Germany in the 60’s and 70’s, there was no
deforestation and I do not remember ever seeing any of those old fashioned
artificial trees. I do however, remember numerous times, going out into an
nearby forest with my dad and a couple of my siblings, usually on Christmas Eve, where we
picked out and chopped down the Christmas tree of our choice and hauled it home
in the family car. I then stayed up, usually with my mom and my older sister,
and we decorated the tree with mostly handmade ornaments, a few glass bulbs, and
candles (this was before electric candles were available) after all the younger
siblings went to bed. We would enjoy the tree for a brief couple of days before
we took it down again. During that time we would occasionally gather around the
tree and very carefully and only briefly light the candles under close
supervision. It was always a magical moment when we lit the candles for the
first time on Christmas morning . . . but to this day I am still extremely
grateful that we never started a fire.
For me it is too much work and not long enough time to enjoy my
tree for just a couple of days. However, I still have a lot of family and
friend contacts in Germany, and it is still not uncommon that one or more of
them will tell me that they are putting up their Christmas tree on Christmas
Eve as part of their Christmas ritual . . . and although the real candles are
still a traditional part of the Christmas tree decorations for most of us, they
are no longer lit on their tree or on ours. Gratefully we now enjoy the
twinkling of our safe and colorful electric lights on timers !
We love our Christmas tree traditions and I hope you are enjoying
yours as much as we are ours.
Happy Holidays
