Whew….Another holiday is in the history books.  All of the decor needs to be packed away.

Although I love to decorate for Christmas, and I continue the process up until the actual day, I dread taking it all down and putting it away.  I love the holidays; the baking, the eating, the drinking, the cards, the letters (at least most of them), the time with family, …I love all of it.

However…it must be packed away.

I do not love taking it all down and putting it away and I really hate how empty and drab the house looks when all is said and done.  That in addition to the gray skies and cold weather that sets in, makes for the dreary days of January.

Historically I do not  pack everything away until Epiphany…January 6th, the 12th day of Christmas, the arrival of the Magi.  Many of my friends celebrate Orthodox Christmas on this day and historically it is the final day that my decor is evident.  I remember growing up that my mom would take down our decorations after this date as well.

This year was slightly different.  The grand girls were here when we put up the tree.  The 9 year old was instrumental in getting all of the ornaments unwrapped and ready….we staged them while we waited for the 11 year old’s arrival.  Perish the thought that we would begin without her.

Because we have celebrated Christmas in Aruba for years and I elected not to put up a tree for many years, the unwrapping of the ornaments brought back memories that had not surfaced for years.  As an aside, one of the best parts of decorating for the season is the memories hiding in the boxes that we only open once a year.

Well….because the grand girls basically decorated the tree, at least until they bickered and/or got bored, I did not reminiese over the ornaments like I normally do, I simply supervised the application.

Well now that I have taken the tree down, and the ornaments are safely stored away, I must share that I spent hours taking them off of the tree and treasuring the memories that many of them brought back to me.

Take this collection of ceramic ornaments, a gift from my mom years ago.  I think now of the painstaking hours she spent perfecting each one.  I think of all the hours and days back and forth to the little shop where she created so many works of art marking each one on the back with “Lou” to identify them after firing.

Ornaments were one of the gifts that my family loved to give each other. For several years bears were given.  Not just any bear.  A bear with personality.  You must understand that my family has a history with special bears.  Many of the bears received are now hanging on the trees of my children, but I still have these special fellows.

We had years and years that we received Santa, always a unique version.  I captured a picture of a few.  I have a whole box of glass Santas that never made it on to the tree.  It would be fun to do just a Santa tree.

The ‘Ole Buckeye and I began collecting White House ornaments after a visit with our dear family friends Peter and Eloise at there home outside of Washington DC.  Their tree was filled with these beautiful and historical masterpieces, each with its’ own special story.  We have let this collection waver over the years since we have not been routinely decorating a tree.  It is time to renew that tradition.

Then there are the ornaments collected on our travels.  Japan, New Orleans, Aruba, San Antonio, Texas…

The sad thing about this particular collection is the losses.  So many have been fragile…so many have broken.  And they cannot be replaced.  Sigh.

And finally…the ornaments I have made.  Funny…I have made so many, but kept so few.

As I look at this montage, a hodgepodge of retrospection I realize that although I have a variety of sterling, crystal, and dated collectables from Swarovski, Judith Jack, Reed and Barton, and so many more, they don’t hold a candle to the ones given out of love and common significance.  The ones that pull the heartstrings are for reasons only known to the giver and the receiver.

So many memories, so much to be thankful for, so many sentiments packed away for yet another year.