Enjoy an old-fashioned holiday season, tree or no tree

For most of us, celebrating the holiday season usually begins with getting the Christmas tree – oops, I mean the holiday tree; we must be politically correct. The question we might have to ask ourselves today, though, is: To tree or not to tree?

With all the safety restrictions and concerns about traveling brought on by the coronavirus, many will forgo those family get-togethers and be home alone. So, as the saying goes, if a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it really count? Actually, I have no idea what that means, but it has something to do with whether or not it is really worth decorating.

It used to be the question was whether you should get a real tree or go the artificial tree route. Now we are faced with a different scenario. One look at that round, tangled mess of lights hidden under boxes of broken bulbs in the attic or garage and the problem was solved. Decisions were based totally on garage science.

Most people think the Christmas tree tradition originated at Walmart. But some experts indicated it went as far back as early Egyptian times, when it was thought that bringing greens into the house was a good sign. The more popular belief is that it started in Germany and England with candles used around the tree. Obviously, a great effort to reduce the electrical bill. It was around that time that the tree was brought inside during the holiday season.

One year, my husband and friends decided to chop down their own tree at a rural tree farm. Nothing like a good old-fashioned Christmas, everyone agreed before we set out.

After trudging through knee-deep snow for what seemed like forever, because all the trees looked the same, our leader shouted to stop. He had found the right tree, not because it was perfect, but because he had looked at his watch and realized it was half an hour before kickoff time for the perfect football game on TV.

And so we hacked and sawed away until we hit bone, or at least something gave us the impetus to haul up the tree, which had the most crooked limbs and trunk I’ve ever seen. We drove home like a NASCAR race driver, rounding curves and veering across lines. Not to worry; one of the men counted down the time. Most other drivers understood once they saw the tree strapped to the roof flapping up and down like the tongue of an alligator.

We arrived just in time for the game, which you could see from the street, since the television was the size of the football field.

The tree was trimmed during halftime, if you could call it that. It was cut down over and over again, until it resembled a small centerpiece for the dining room table. Every limb required some other part of the tree cut to make it even. Eventually, we all agreed it could pass for the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Whatever your decision this year, tree or no tree, decorations or no decorations, you can still enjoy an old-fashioned holiday, even if you are alone. There is no perfect tree. But if you have one, there is just a lot of fun, a lot of experiences for later, a lot of stories and a lot of photos to be found when you learn how to retrieve them.

Statistics tell us we are buying decorations like they are going out of style. I’ll be one of those shoppers, with as many unlikely-looking ornaments as possible to hang on the tree. And with the help of a different kind of old-fashioned, time on my hands to enjoy it. Good luck with that.