Decorate? Why Bother?

We didn’t decorate for Christmas because we were going to be gone- so why bother? But we didn’t do it the last few years either, because of a lot of reasons- mostly the Bah-Humbug ones. But last year we made the trek north to Newport, Oregon to have Christmas with our estranged family after 9 years of separation and we took a box of goodies (including two tiny trees and 100 ft of lights) to make the Air BnB a bit more Christmassy. Afterall, we were inviting over all the family: three grandkids, the only great-granddaughter ~ all my nieces and nephews. All the family we have, including my brother, Steve—(and who knew it would be his last Christmas here on earth?) The decorations really DID make it more festive, and I decorated the whole place, with only a little help from my brother and Fabian. Everyone loved it- especially the whole room draped in 100 feet of twinkle lights!

So, when it was time to pack up and ‘get outta dodge’ for this Christmas, to go house-sit in a stranger’s house and watch two kitties for a week, I thought, “Hey, I think I’ll take that box! It’s already packed from last Christmas!” It’s a big clear tub, so I could see that there was a tiny alpine tree in it, a baggie of ornaments and some garland and ribbon- it would be fine! We tossed it in the car and went on our adventure.

It was a two-hour drive in the rain after a 12-hour day of flying from the east coast to stay in a strange place… what were we thinking?  We seriously had no idea if it would be good or bad; but of one thing we were sure—it would be an adventure!

The first morning, we got the tour of the house and the owners left for their vacation – we were here to make it “home” for a week and hope the kitties (named Thunder and Lightning) warmed up to us. Our first evening, we had nothing on the agenda, so I broke out the box of decorations….to my surprise, there were actually TWO tiny alpine trees in the box and LOTS of ornaments! And I had also forgotten about the $1.25 tiny white tree I got at the Dollar Tree. A total impulse item! But a fellow shopper in line raved about “how cute it was and such a great value with a decent stand and all!” Haha- and she was right! Who Knew? For a box that looked like it held a neat stack of a dozen wooden rulers, it sure popped up to be an adorable tree! (it just needs a proper skirt!)

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So, I put the trees on the coffee table in front of the couch where Mom was sitting, turned on Elvis Christmas Album (our family tradition) and we just started decorating! An hour later it felt like a different house- and it felt festive, and we felt accomplished and creative and happy! 

What a shift! #WhoKnew? I think I will never “pooh-pooh” the idea of decorating again! (even though we’ll just have to take it all down in a few days, right?)  But sometimes it’s the little things that make you feel differently and then see differently and then it transforms the world around us. Whether it is our bedroom, our home, our neighborhood, our own city… making the effort to ____(fill in the blank)___ can make a difference!  

The ripples of change go farther than we can imagine.

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What a fabulous lesson in making the time to get into the spirit of the season when it just seems to be so frivolous!

So think about your day…or your next week. Perhaps the coming year?

What can you do today to lift your spirits and celebrate life? 

Having a positive mental attitude and a celebratory spirit CAN make all the difference for not only you, but everyone around you!

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#celebrate #bringthechange #bringyourownsunshine #doitanyway #whynot? #takethetime #justforyou #orjustforthem #orjustbecause #orjusttoshifttheatmosphere #bubbleup #togetherwerise

#gothruthegate #cleartheway #raisethebanner #celebrate #leadthecheer

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