I love my artificial Christmas tree. Every year, it is one less thing to have to work into the budget. It saves me from the hassle of having to go pick one out, haul it across town, drag it up the stairs, struggle to get it to sit straight, keep it watered and clean up all the pine needles off of the floor. It also saves me from that rather depressing post Christmas ritual of hauling the tree out to the curb only to watch it lose all semblance of cheer in a rather quick decay before someone comes to haul it away.
I much prefer the stress free artificial tree. I set it up the day after Thanksgiving and never have to clean up after it, or worry that it won't last till Christmas. Even the ritual of putting the tree back in it's box is somehow exciting for me because it almost celebrates the fact that I will have need of it again next year rather than mourning the passing of this year. It feels a bit like hope.
My sister has teased me about having a fake tree for years, and even that ritual has become something to look forward to. I was raised to believe as she does that an artificial tree is tacky, or even perhaps shows a lack of true Christmas spirit. I obviously changed my mind.
I have learned that the only way I can have any sort of happy holiday is by keeping the stress down to a minimum. I wrap my gifts as soon as I get them, I prepare any cookies the night before, and I even try to load up the car with anything that I can before the morning of having to go somewhere. It is not because I am some sort of ultra organized person, but in fact because of the opposite. I am so disorganized that I know there will be a million and one last minute details that I will have forgotten and the only way to leave time for those screw ups is to have as much already done as possible.
My husband and I used to have a huge fight on the way to any family functions because of the chaos of getting us all out the door. Since I have been trying to reduce the stress in little ways I have been able to enjoy my holidays a lot more.
So to those of you that would scoff at me and my plastic tree I leave that stress to those of you that think it is worth it. As for me, I will be laughing all the way to the closet where my fake tree will be safely stored until next year.
Happy Holidays!
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3 comments:
Your saving all of those poor little pines they chop down and we throw away after having them in the house for a few weeks...we love ours and it came with lights on too, I always hated untangling those lights...Merry Christmas
I like my artificial tree too. It isn't without work (the baby kitty loves to climb it and leap out after the older cats - makes a mess).
You're right, it's all about making Christmas the wonderful holiday that it should be!
Others can have the stress if they want, I'm with you and the artificial tree!
I agree with you 100% about having an artificial tree. Especially for the facts that I don't have to worry about bugs on the tree or allergic reactions that I would have from a real tree.
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