Decorations and Memories

I usually wait until Thanksgiving weekend to decorate for Christmas, but after going to the mountains and seeing all the Christmas lights, I came home ready to fill the house with the sights and sounds of Christmas. I have all my decorations out and in the process of being placed where they go. I love getting out ornaments and remembering where they came from and when I got them. I have old decorations from my childhood that cause me to think back to when they hung on the tree at my parent's home. As I decorate one of our trees with the older ornaments, I think about all the years my daddy and I would decorate a tree together. I have a ceramic tree that my 90+ year old aunt gave me that she originally purchased while shopping with my grandmother. It makes me think back to when my grandmother was still living and we would go to her home for Christmas. Decorating for Christmas is more than just getting things out and plugging in lights. It is a real stroll down memory lane that makes those that are still with me seem closer and those that have passed away feel near. I love nothing more than plugging all the lights in, lighting the logs in the fireplace, and making a pot of coffee. I spend time listening to Christmas music and thinking about how blessed I am to have the Lord in my heart and memories of the Godly people from my life that have gone on to be with Him.