Trimming the Tree with Memories

I was on a mission to decorate the Christmas tree today in between loads of laundry and dishes. I was thinking it would be nice if the ornaments would just march up the tree and snuggle up into branches on their own without any assistance from me. Since I knew that was not going to happen, I began an efficient process of box opening and ornament hanging.

Then something happened. As I unwrapped Christmas ornaments that had special meaning to me, I slowed down and paused to think about them. I thought about how one friend gave me glass ornaments she had decorated with beads, pearls and ribbons. I marveled at the fact that another friend was able to get a glass ornament home safely from her trip to Italy and give that handmade art to me as a gift. I smiled at the popsicle-stick star that a niece made when she was little. I remembered a trip my hubby and I took to Universal Studios, where we found the Cindy Lou Who ornament after exploring a Dr. Seuss-inspired world. I hung up the first ornament my hubby ever gave me, and I looked at all the skating-themed ornaments from him and my family, who accepted my fascination with skating long ago.

Sentimental Jane won out over Practical Jane, but the decorating job still got done. It was just a lot more meaningful task when Sentimental Jane took over.