Those of you who know me know I enjoy decorating for Christmas. So much so that I have 6 Christmas Trees up in my home. Each of them has a story. And yes, you heard right, I have 6 Christmas Trees.
I have a Starbucks Tree that has ornaments that date back to 1991. It is a 7-foot tree in which I always select colorful lights to shine bright. I also have a small 4-foot tree that is my home depot tree. I have white bulbs for this one, as the orange ornaments are the primary color that pops.
There is a 7-foot white fur island-inspired tree that has natural starfish ornaments. Along with this, it also has pearl-inspired ornaments, gold seahorses, gold shells, and a pearl starfish topper. I also have my 12-foot explosion tree of everything Rick and I collected throughout dating and marriage. My last 7-foot tree has always been an ombre bulb tree, but this year we did a simple ribbon all the way around. Honestly, I was so tired from putting up the previous four trees that I threw in the towel for this one. For now, it looks simple, with a white ribbon printed with words of joy.
Recapping, I have shared five trees with you just now. My starbucks tree, my home depot tree, my island tree, my anything and everything, and my simple white ribboned tree. I am saving the best for last. My 6th tree is just that, a special tree. It is 13 inches high and has green fur.
This tree (pictured above) has been in my family since December 2020. It almost got tossed in the trash, believe it or not. When Rick came home from the hospital in the Spring of 2021, after being there for over two months, he came with a bag of collected items from his hospital room.
As any wife would do, I tried to make his stay at the hospital the most festive. So I bought him this small Christmas tree I found at Target.
So there was the tree in this basic plastic bag. I was ready to toss it because I wanted to start fresh and make new memories. However, Rick had other plans. My husband went through a season of difficult trials at the end of 2020-the beginning of 2021 ( I cannot wait until he shares his story of being a miracle).
During this time, he shared with me that the little Christmas tree in his room brought him joy and hope. This revelation changed my view of this little tree. What some may perceive as a negative thing, others may perceive as a positive reminder of the goodness in a trial season.
It also brings me great joy to remind my family that God’s love can continue to burn bright even in the most uncomfortable of situations.
So now, we have six trees in our home. This little one is the tree that takes the least time to put up. It also brings me great joy to remind my family that God’s love can continue to burn bright even in the most uncomfortable of situations.
This love is not a tree. It is the act of showing God’s love during these times. A love so sweet that comes from a God in heaven. A God that gave us his son Jesus Christ as a gift to us all.
I was reading Luke this morning in Chapter 2. In verses 10 and 11 from the Passion Translation Bible, it reads, “But the angel reassured them, saying, “Don’t be afraid, for I have come to bring you good news, the most joyous news the world has ever heard! And it is for everyone everywhere! For today in Bethlehem a rescuer was born for you. He is the Lord Yahweh, the Messiah.”
I love the part that reads, “it is for everyone everywhere” (Luke 2:10). The love of God is for everyone everywhere. No matter where you are, it is never too late to see the goodness of God in your situation.
Much like in my little Christmas Tree story, when I saw how much my husband loved that tree, I could not help but keep that little tree.
May God bless you during this Merry and Joyous season.
Happy Birthday to Jesus Christ, the best gift given to us by God.
Enjoy pictures of my Christmas Trees.
6 responses to “The Little Christmas Tree”
-
When I thought about your little tree I knew it must have meant something huge and memorable. Now by sharing your story behind this little tree, this tree is just not a tree. Through Ricks trials, no matter how hard it was, both of you continued to put your faith in god and god provided both of you the strength to get through this tough time. Thanks for sharing!
“Growth and Strength: A tree is a universal symbol of strength and growth as they stand tall and strong all over the world. They spread their roots deep into the soil to ground and stabilize themselves. Trees can weather the toughest of storms, which is why they are such a prominent symbol for strength.”
-
Hello Paula,
Thank you for sharing this! What an amazing message those angels delivered! We would all still be waiting in darkness if the time had not been “right”. We are so thankful for Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection. What a joy to be forgiven and a member of God’s forever family.
Have you discovered “The Chosen”? It’s a crowd-funded, made for TV, series about Jesus and the disciples. This is so different than any movie about Jesus. He and the disciples seem “real”, not “flat” people on a Bible page or a movie screen.
There is a free app, called “The Chosen”. It works with Roku, Fire Stick and others, so that you can watch it on your TV. If you haven’t seen it yet, we hope you will give it a try. The goal of the writers is to make the story of Jesus accessible to people around the world. The stories people post after watching it are so touching. Many people are discovering a Jesus that never knew about and are searching the Bible to find out more.
We hope you and Rick had a very special Christmas together with family. We hope Rick is feeling strong and back to normal.
Because of the horrible conditions on the mountain pass, we didn’t go spend Christmas Eve day with my sister, brother-in-law and two nephews in the Renton area. We had a Zoom meeting instead. One nephew flies up from L.A., so we were really sorry to miss seeing him in person.
The services at our church are always very special and it’s good to see people we might only see once a year.
Lord willing, we plan to be at SPI, flying down on the 28th and returning home the 11th. We look forward to seeing you and spending time catching up on your year.
Hugs,
Linda & Doug
-
Hi Linda and Doug,
What a beautiful comment. Rick and I are doing well. Rick had to work this Christmas Weekend, so we barely celebrated last night.
We know about the Chosen, but have not watched it. We will definitely check it out.
We are looking forward to Kite Fest 2023, and we are so looking forward to seeing all of our friends from all over.
I’m sorry to hear you didn’t get to spend time with loved ones this year. This weather is so strong this year!
We will see you soon!
Rick and Paula
LikeLike
-
-
Receive new posts directly to your inbox! Sign up Below!
Stay Connected through all forms of social media.
Paula Villarreal 
Leave a Reply