The Year Without A Christmas Tree

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The rain that poured outside with cold nippy winds made 3rd Avenue looked even more like the urban little street it was tucked in between the Lucky’s Supermarket and Walgreen’s stores. I lived with my roommate ( my ex-partner) right up the street from the stores. We were only a little over a block from Lake Merritt, this little gem of area in the city of Oakland.

The gray cloudy skies only punctuated a year marked by hard times not only from a monetary vein but also from an emotional one. Transitioning into singlehood had been painful so the holidays this year came not with the jubliance that normally filled our apartment in previous years. I know when I put up the Christmas village and some of the Christmas decorations on the fireplace mantle and on the front door right after Thanksgiving, it was done with some measured habit and not with my normal seasonal whimsy.

So when we finally went to get the tree, we opted for the the small tree lot in front of the Lucky’s since it was across the street from us. We found one that we like and we hauled it back to our apartment. My roommate was responsible for getting it up onto the stand and putting the lights on and then I put the ornaments up and the rest of the trimmings.

He had a day off work so he thought he could do his part fairly easy.

When I got off work, the tree was still not up and my roommate looked exhausted and frustrated. Apparently, he needed to cut off a section from the stem of the tree and when he tried to saw into it , the saw he used was too flimsy. Secondly, there was this nail that was driven into the center of the stem that was difficult to remove. Well, a better saw was used but had similar results. More tools came and the tree was still too difficult to cut and the nail refused to budge. This ordeal went on for a few days and finally the tree had dried up so much that it had to be discarded.

No tree this year. This year that was cursed with Grinch-like times.

Such an allegory for the joy that was squelched many times out of our lives this past year. However, like the Who’s from whom all was taken by the evil Grinch, we can realize that the most important things are not all these exterior symbols or things that make up this season. However, it is the personification of peace and love when we can join our hands together and well Christmas morn simply because our hearts are full of the real meaning of the season.

I will miss our Christmas tree but Christmas will still come . I will be there to greet it.