Christmas Joy

I have not put up one Christmas decoration since 2013 and have not missed dragging boxes from storage. Usually for the holidays I travel to California to be with my family and could not see any reason for bringing out decorations. I get a slight pang when I visit friends and they have beautiful decorated trees and their homes are all sparkly and shiny with angels, Santa's, animals, candy, Nativities, candles, and what ever brings the holiday to mind.

This year I will be at home and today as I sat reading a book that is due at the library in two days, I began to think that maybe I should at least put up my small tree. I have a big tree that reaches to the ceiling with the many ornaments I have collected through the years but remembering how much work putting that tree up and then getting it down, I opted for the smaller four foot tree.

Digging through boxes and containers, I found the tree and once the Fiber Optic tree that operates from a single bulb was plugged in, it remained dark. I began to wonder if getting decorations out was such a great idea. Nothing ever goes as planned! When I pulled out the three figures of Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus from South America my heart gave an excited flutter.  All my life, setting up the Nativity has given me much pleasure and now my heart reminded me how much I love the Christmas story.

Since I have about forty Nativity sets, I only brought up three to put in my front room. The South American one, the set that looks wooden but is ceramic with the name of Heartwood Creek and the last one is a porcelain set given to me by my son so many Christmases ago. I remember him saying, "Mom, I know how you like Nativity sets and here is one more for your collection!"

Placing the figures in their usual positions, I knew that bringing the few decorations up had given me the Christmas Spirit. Once I get the front room decorated, I will move to my kitchen to drape the banister with green boughs and lights. Maybe even my bathroom will get the usual decorations of Santa and his train, if I can find it!

I give thanks to God that he placed the idea in my head to stop reading and begin preparing for his son's birth!

"I wish we could put some

Christmas Spirit in jars and

open a jar of it every month."

Harlan Miller