A Christmas tree's journey

Brent's and my second Christmas together as a married couple found us counting pennies and unable to afford a Christmas tree.  Our first Christmas had been spent with family so we didn't really feel the loss or necessarily want a tree.  This year I did.  Some dear friends found out we didn't have one and were just aghast at the thought, so they generously gave us a check with enough to buy a huge, gorgeous artificial tree, and also gobs of ornaments and decorations.  The tree touched the ceiling in our little apartment and was bigger than any of our furniture!  I sat for hours and just looked at that tree, it was beautiful and decorated exactly how I had dreamed it would be!

The following year, we enjoyed the same tree.  The year after that, we were traveling on deputation to go to Cuba so the tree and fixin's were all stored.  The following Christmas, we were in Cuba and bought ourselves a sad, scrawny little tree and decorated it with sad, scrawny little ornaments.  The following year, we were with my parents and heading back to Cuba.  The following two Christmases we used our sad little tree in Cuba and were thankful for it.  The next year, we came to Peru and actually shipped our precious tree and set it up in our even smaller apartment in Lima.  Oh, how happy I was to have that tree again!  It survived storage well and was as lovely as before for the next 2 years.  The following year, we were in the U.S. with my parents once again and the tree was stored.  The next 4 years in Lima we were able to fully enjoy our great tree, used the same ornaments and added new ones each year.  A couple years ago, we spent Christmas in Texas in our own home, so we bought ourselves a small, not too scrawny tree and new ornaments.  We called it our furlough tree.  We are now back in Peru and last Christmas got our dear faithful tree out of the musty, dusty storage room and set it up, still with some of the original ornaments.  It is showing some age but is just as beautiful as ever.  

This Christmas, we are here in the jungle of Peru and once again, big green is stored and we have bought ourselves a small, scrawny little tree and some new ornaments.  I was a little sad, but the thought of digging all of our Christmas paraphernalia out and stuffing it into the back of our car and bringing it here, to set up in our even smaller apartment......just didn't seem right.  So now we have our Pichanaki tree and my sadness disappeared as soon as my Lucas started dancing around and saying how pretty it was!  My perspective was made right once again.  After all, it's only a tree.  Christmas isn't about trees and life isn't about having what we desire.  I love that tree and all of its trimmings and I'll never forget D & D who gave us the money for it.  I love the journey of my life more, though, and that tree will just have to wait until we're ready to pull it out again!

Now I need to go plug the Christmas tree lights in and enjoy our Pichanaki tree!