Being flexible, learning true meaning of Christmas

We were late getting our Christmas tree this year. Usually, as per my family tradition, we start putting everything up on the day after Thanksgiving. 

But this year was different – as we’ve heard so many times in the past months. We spent this Thanksgiving with just the four of us, introducing our boys to turkey (which they would eat smothered with gravy, and really – is there any other way?). 

Other than a more elaborate meal, the day seemed like any other for us: the same routine, the same activities and finally Thanksgiving dinner, followed by bath time and bedtime reading.

The day after Thanksgiving, we talked about getting our Christmas tree. The day was rainy and overcast – did we really want to take the boys out in that weather? Did we really want to take the boys out at all? What if there were crowds? Mask-wearing has lapsed. It was a risk we didn’t want to take.

In the days that passed, setting up for Christmas seemed like a task to be done in the distant future. End of semester chaos prevailed – exams and papers gathered in their digital files, waiting to be graded.

By the time we finally got around to taking a lunch break while our babysitter watched the boys, the local tree farm had sold out of trees. Unlike us, it seems, many people were ready and waiting for the dawn of Christmas preparation. We were told that it was the fastest they’ve ever sold out of trees. That was on Dec. 8 – a mere 12 days from Black Friday. Astounding.

We ended up picking out our tree from Home Depot – there were only three left in our size range. Never again, I told myself inwardly, would I wait to get my Christmas tree.

This year’s festivities are in stark contrast to last year when we drove to a large farm to cut down our tree. We took pictures of the boys in an oversized wreath to put on the back of our annual Christmas cards. It would be a new tradition in our new hometown. 

We also had family with us to help with the cutting down of the tree, the unboxing of Christmas decorations, the placing of decor. Now, with scampering toddlers getting into mischief at every turn of the corner, I knew it would be futile to pull out the holiday decorations. After all, how could they resist pulling them all down? 

Like everything else, we decided to scale down: lights and garland on the Christmas tree, alongside a felt tree that the boys can play with and “place” ornaments; stockings and garland high on the bannister – out of reach of tiny hands. 

Perhaps, if we get a free moment, the outdoor lights will be put up before Christmas.

If motherhood during a pandemic has taught me anything, it has taught me to be flexible. It has taught me that traditions change – that with every season, memories are made regardless of the ideas we had hoped. It has taught me the importance of presence.

Our Christmas won’t look like last year’s Christmas. But the holiday spirit will be with us, regardless of what the decor looks like or how late everything goes up.

The spirit of Christmas isn’t in the material things that make up the look of the holiday; it lies within the memories we make and the moments we cherish.

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