I may be the last holdout in putting away my Christmas decorations. Well, let me rephrase that. I may be the last one who wants to keep them up just because I love them!!
We acknowledge Twelfth Night (Jan 5), which according to my aunt is Old Christmas. So, I always leave Christmas up until at least then. I say acknowledge because it usually falls short of an actual celebration. One of our family traditions was to burn your tree on January 5 or Big Tall Betsy would “get ya”. It’s great fun to build a bonfire, throw on everyone’s tree, roast hot dogs and marshmallows and reminiscence over the bygone year.
This all worked great when we lived in Florida and the weather actually cooperated. The Midwest is a whole other ballgame. Plus, people stopped using real trees. Plus, Big Tall Betsy is a minor villain my children have left in the past. Plus, the family is spread out all over the continent.
So, enjoying my Christmas decorations is my way of holding my family close and staving off the world for a few more days. That euphoria I get along about Thanksgiving is still strong in January. I believe that this is going to be a better year. I believe God gave us His only begotten Son as the ultimate gift. I believe Christ wants the very very best for each of us. I believe His joy, His peace and His love can conquer evil.
When I drive down the streets and see these banners proclaiming it to the world, my heart sings and my face smiles. And, ok, sometimes my face sings, too! So, when we take down Christmas, it always makes me sad. The public display of His Love is packed away. As a community, we no longer declare the hope that comes from Christ.
In this day and age, it seems we must struggle to affirm that He even exists. Political correctness has muzzled us. So, when Christmas comes down and is stuffed into storage my mood turns gloomy for a bit. But, then I remember, it’s only 360 days ‘till Christmas!!!