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| Remembering when |
When I was a kid, I loved Christmas and all the presents (receiving them mostly), the tree and decorating it, all of that. But today I only remember a few of the presents I received. Although I don't remember them, I sure do remember the anticipation and all the fun of wondering just what was in that package with my name on it. Every family has its own way of celebrating the season.
One of my favorite Christmas pastimes was to push the presents out of the way and lie down under the tree, looking up at the lights and smelling that delicious Christmas tree smell. Back then we also used tinsel, which reflected the lights in the most delightful way. I would scrunch my eyes up until everything blurred a little, and I can still see that image today. It looked a lot like this, but with more color:
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| Shamelessly snagged from the Internet |
I've learned in my photography attempts that those lights in the background are called
bokeh, out of focus and even possible to create with my iPhone if I really wanted to mess around with it. I was creating bokeh with my eyes, making a nice pattern of beautiful lights. And it's an image that has stayed with me to this day.
Well, I no longer have a tree to stick my head under, and there is no one to wrap and place mysterious presents underneath it, either. No matter; these days I get a great deal of pleasure by thinking of little gifts that would make my friends happy, and I'm getting in the mood. It makes me smile to think how much somebody might appreciate a set of hand warmers, only good for one use but sure nice to have for a chilly hike. Or a batik handkerchief, or a favorite Christmas cookie.
Yes, I'm definitely getting in the Christmas spirit! Hope you're having a good time getting ready for the holiday, too.
:-)
What a wonderful memory! It reminded me that I used to pull out my Barbie dolls and play with them under the tree, which of course, was woven into the scenario that I was creating with the dolls.
ReplyDeleteSome wonderful memories to hug to yourself. Love that you are getting the spirit.
ReplyDeleteI am pouring it over my Christmas cakes. Does that count?
I still remember the *magic* of Christmas. I felt it in the air. Maybe it was *love* that I felt, but in my child's mind (and in my aging one still), it was *magic*. It was easier to feel then. Now, it comes in moments...
ReplyDeleteI remember that tinsel! First the stuff that broke, and later the artificial, indestructible variety. My mother was a stickler for orderly placement, but I have always been quite flexible about how it goes on.
ReplyDeletePutting the tinsel on the tree was always a bit of a controversy - toss it on (NO) or painstakingly one strand at a time (YES).
ReplyDeleteChristmas magic. Yes, always as a child, and even as a young adult. Ant then certainly as a mother of young children. I lost that magic when my nest emptied, but grandchildren have helped to restore it. I still love Christmas, and do my best to create my own magic to share.
DJan, I love it that you are spending time thinking of thoughtful little gifts for others. That truly is the spirit of Christmas.
bless you, dear djan.
ReplyDeleteNice memory of christmas. I remember the spruce tree smell when it was brought in the house. We look back at Christmas when we were secure in our parents love and care.
ReplyDeleteAs a kid, I used to lie under the tree, too, and stare up at the lights. Then I would open a book and read, surrounded by the delicious scent of one. Cool post!
ReplyDeleteAh yes, I too have tried the "Christmas tree light bokeh" shots. They are really pretty if you get them just right.
ReplyDeleteThey are wonderful memories Djan and similar to mine. We had tinsel too and I still do because I prefer the traditional look, but we never had a huge tree so I could not have got beneath it because it was on a table.
ReplyDeleteAlways fun to reminisce at Christmas time. And I am definitely in the spirit.
ReplyDeleteDid you hear the plink plink of needles falling off the tree onto packages? I loved to just sit quietly in the room with the tree with only it's lights on:)
ReplyDeleteDJan, what a wonderful way to get ready for Christmas! Also, thanks for the definition of bokeh, a word I've seen but never bothered to look up. Somewhere inside me is a post or two about Christmas, and it's about time I took the time to find it!
ReplyDeleteMy holiday spirit starts up shortly after Halloween--LOL! I don't remember all that many of my presents, either, looking back--but the spirit of love and good will and joy--whoohoo!! That is Christmas to me. Presents really haven't been a part of it to me since Dagan was little so I pay little or no attention to the commercialism. But the whole season fills me up to the brim. I can be very annoying to scrooges, I tell you. ;)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful memory. Lying under the tree.
ReplyDeleteI find Christmas to not be nearly as much fun as it was as a kid. For then, I only had to show up. I do enjoy thinking deeply about each person on my list and choosing something special for them.
I so enjoyed reading this D J!!! Wow...what a terrific 'blast from the past' and all your happy memories. And trying new things with your phone.
ReplyDeleteThis was an incredible, loving, warm, post.
Great memory! Does anyone use tinsel anymore?
ReplyDeleteI bought a blue cellophane tree without lights, which are not necessary because the cellophane sparkles even at night.
ReplyDeleteThis is a lovely post. I like the photos you picked – they illustrate your memories so well. It’s good that you are in the Christmas spirit. I hope you are not getting too much rain as I have seen on TV.
ReplyDeleteI love this post too, DJan. I used to love that pine smell too when we were kids. My parents did get a tree for us to enjoy. When we got a fresh tree on the mainland, there wasn't as much of a smell. I'm wondering if it's because the air was so much drier than in humid Hawaii. Now we only have artificial trees. I worry about the fresh trees that come in from the mainland because every year they say they have to really check the trees for bugs.
ReplyDeleteI'm not somber or anything like that, but I can't seem to get my holiday spirit up and running. Tree is still not up and I wonder if we'll even get it up at all. I don't know. We have so much to do and the accident we got into yesterday doesn't help either. Someone backed into us in the parking lot. Sheesh! That's all we needed to complicate an already packed month.