O Christmas Tree

Through all the changes in my life, the one constant that has remained are the ornaments on my Christmas tree.  They all have a story behind them, a memory attached to them.  Several are from my childhood - mementos from grammar school crafts and things that hung on my tree as a young girl.  Quite a lot are from my travels; I buy an ornament from everywhere I go so that I am reminded of the places that I have seen. London, Paris, Greece, Dubai - they are all represented and the girls have learned where each one came from.

Some are their ornaments, given each year since birth by their great-grandmother (a tradition I continued once she passed).  A few are family ornaments that have reflected the changes that we have gone through these last few years.  A small number are cherished treasures from my grandparents tree - favorites of my grandmother's that make me smile when I see them and remember exactly where she used to hang them.

Almost my entire life's story is told in ornaments on my tree.  It makes me sad that the people I shared the majority of those experiences with are gone - my dad, my grandparents.  They were the keepers of my childhood memories.   The Christmas tree is the one place that I can look at and see who and where I've been.  It doesn't lie.  It's all hanging there for me to look at, smile, laugh, cry and remember.

Does your Christmas tree tell a story about you?