Our Christmas Tree Tradition

We put up our Christmas tree yesterday. Rodney and I started a very special tradition with our very first tree in 1990, and that tradition still stands today. Every year, we purchase only one very special ornament. Yes, our first Christmas tree held lots of twinkly lights, but only one ornament. The annual selection of this ornament is a very well-thought-out process. The ornament must commemorate a special event that will always be remembered through that one ornament. Several of our ornaments are monuments to someone special who we lost that year. There is an ornament for all of the grandparents, one for Rodney's mother Geraldine, and one for my sister Monique. There are also ornaments for beloved pets that have left us, so that we may remember how very much we loved them. There are ornaments to commemorate special vacations that were taken, and momentous events and acheivements. We have 20 of these ornaments, and each year we perform a ritual of placing them on the tree, and remembering why that ornament was chosen. We reflect on each one individually as Rodney places them lovingly on the tree. Sometimes it takes 45 minutes to an hour just to hang these 20 ornaments. Since our first tree, we have accumulated many other ornaments, mainly gifts from treasured friends. But none are as cherished as these 20. The hanging of the "Special Ornaments" is one of my most anticipated Christmas traditions. It is an opportunity to remember things that may have otherwise been forgotten, and to again love those who we will miss forever. So today, I am so, so, SO thankful for our Christmas tree tradition.