home is, indeed, where the heart is...
I just finished
decorating for Christmas and it went a lot better than it did last year. We
were new to the house then and there was a lot going on. My Dad was very sick
and we had a troubled teenage niece living with us. All I really wanted to do
was go to Colorado and help take care of my Dad, but, that wasn’t to be, so I
felt misplaced and sad the whole season. Plus, I missed my old home so
much.
That house was a
grand old beauty, bright white with stately columns and two big holly trees in front.
And, how that house came alive at Christmas time! The rooms were big,
colorfully painted, with 13’ ceilings and Victorian woodwork. We always had
three, if not four, Christmas trees, decorated in different themes. There were
eight painstakingly restored wooden mantels, also adorned in different themes.
There was the “angel mantel,” the “nutcracker mantel” and the “Santa mantel” where
the stockings hung. The front door was adorned with a huge glittering gold
wreath; another hung from the cantilever porch above. It was a holiday
wonderland, replete, perfect and filled with so many memories…26 years-worth of
happy Christmas memories.
Our current home
is simple and small – a cozy, well-built log cabin in the forest on the lake.
And, while it is a pretty place, “replete” is not a word that would ever apply.
The glory here comes from the surroundings, not the home’s scope or spaces.
Last year I
tried to make the decorations that graced our old home fit our new house and it
didn’t work – not by any stretch. The 10’ artificial tree looked bent and sad,
trying to fit into the sunroom, which seemed to be the only place for a tree. The
little white tree looked gloomy and odd in the dark downstairs TV room. The
angels clearly missed their mantel, looking less than serene all haphazardly
stashed on a small round living room table. The Santas, upon being placed on
their equally small shelf, seemed to lack their customary cheer. Only one of
the resplendent glittering gold wreaths could be used and it looked profoundly
out of place.
Seeing these
failures made me leave the rest of the decorations in their bins. Enough! It
wasn’t a very cheery Christmas anyway….
My Dad passed in
February, which left a hole in our hearts that will never be filled. Our niece
went back to her family in California in March. And so far, this year’s holiday
season seems much calmer. Of course, I miss my Dad so much – he was a real
Christmas kind of guy – lots of lights, a big yard display and a train
choo-chooiong around the base of his Christmas tree – we are now settled in to
our lake life and new home. I still miss my wonderful old home, sometimes, especially
during the holidays,
My holiday
decorating mission was different this year. The things that have no sentimental
meaning or that clearly don’t fit in our new space will be donated. So, too,
will any Santas or angels who seem, again this year, to be uncomfortable in
their new, much more humble surroundings. I understand that they may want to
take their chances at the Goodwill, hoping to find another more spectacular
home, perhaps even with mantels, to grace. Bearing no ill will, I would pack
them away gently, donate them and wish them well.
This turned out
to be easier than I thought it would be. The 10’ artificial tree looks magnificent
again, this time in Mr. Clark’s recently added outdoor kitchen. You can see it
from the lake and it looks cheery, indeed. We got a pretty little Norfolk pine
at a local tree farm to grace the sunroom. The guest cottage deck also sports a
festive live tree, adorned with tiny solar-powered lights. And, that sad little
white tree looks just fine, now that the TV room has been repainted. There were
a few ornaments that no longer fit the
much smaller sunroom tree, and a few decorations that seemed to cop an attitude
as I unpacked them, so to the Goodwill they go, along with that pair of glittering
gold wreaths that clearly have no place here.
I hung a simple,
sweet smelling Pine wreath on the front door and it looks just perfect with a simple
red bow and a few festive Pinecone and berry picks. The stairway rail to the
loft shines bright with an almost but not quite tacky display of shiny
Christmas balls and the addition of candles in the windows makes it all look
even more inviting.
As for the
Santas and angels? Maybe it’s my attitude, or their placement in thoughtful,
more appropriate, if still small spaces – whatever it is, they seem content
this year. Not one single volunteer stepped forward to take a chance on regaining
past glory via a trip to the Goodwill.
The lesson? Home
truly is where the heart is; last year my heart was not in this house. What a
difference a year makes, both in good and very sad ways. This home will never
be my old spectacular and most beloved home; I will probably always miss that
grand old beauty at Christmas time. I know I will always miss my Pop. But our
new home is warm and cozy and so much easier to manage. As time goes on, we
will make more happy memories here. This house may be small, but it has a great
capacity to hold love…
I’m glad the
Santas and angels decided to stay. I would’ve missed them and they, I do
believe, would’ve missed us, as well, because for them, as for us, home, whether
it’s a fine, roomy, antique mantel or a small round table near a wood stove, is
truly where the heart is.
