One of the saddest things to me is seeing a Christmas tree on the tree bank on the day after Christmas.Laying there, waiting for the trash collector. Something that brought such joy...just a few days ago, left for the garbage collector. We leave our tree up until after Epiphany.
“The Twelve Days of Christmas”… This puts Christmas into perspective as, not just a day, but season begun by Christmas Day and continuing for twelve days until the celebration of Epiphany on Jan 6th. According to St. Matthew, the wise men brought Jesus gifts, which started the tradition of gift giving during this season The Feast of Epiphany.
It's a lot of work...decorating for Christmas. I've heard some say, "It's over so quickly...all that work and it's over in one day." I'm thinking that maybe people would be happier...letting the feeling of Christmas last a little longer....not being in such a rush to get started on the New Year. One year I put the Christmas things away early, and then it snowed. I looked around my neighborhood and saw some Christmas lights on in people's homes. I wished for that feeling of Christmas ...and vowed that I would never do that again. Sitting in a cozy living room with just the Christmas lights on is one of our favorite things to do. The rush of Christmas is over and now we can just relax and enjoy what we have. Peaceful feelings come over me and I can enjoy the beauty of the season. We do the same at Church...the Altar is left as it was on Christmas. Poinsettias are removed as they start to fade. The Manger has the baby Jesus in his bed and the Wise Men are on top of the brick wall divider...following the star. It's a wonderful tradition.
It's a lot of work...decorating for Christmas. I've heard some say, "It's over so quickly...all that work and it's over in one day." I'm thinking that maybe people would be happier...letting the feeling of Christmas last a little longer....not being in such a rush to get started on the New Year. One year I put the Christmas things away early, and then it snowed. I looked around my neighborhood and saw some Christmas lights on in people's homes. I wished for that feeling of Christmas ...and vowed that I would never do that again. Sitting in a cozy living room with just the Christmas lights on is one of our favorite things to do. The rush of Christmas is over and now we can just relax and enjoy what we have. Peaceful feelings come over me and I can enjoy the beauty of the season. We do the same at Church...the Altar is left as it was on Christmas. Poinsettias are removed as they start to fade. The Manger has the baby Jesus in his bed and the Wise Men are on top of the brick wall divider...following the star. It's a wonderful tradition.
Balisha
3 comments:
A wonderful, insightful post...you covered my feelings completely. We have always left up the tree until Epiphany. Thank you for sharing.
Have a beautiful day,
Pat
I put mine up on December 1st and get more good out of it that way.
I always put my Wise Men off to the side--away from the manger because it took them awhile to get there. I guess I did it because my mother always did AND also left the tree up until Epiphany.
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