The Habit of Remembering: Christmases Long, Long Ago: Part 3

"Who, and what are you?" Scrooge demanded.

"I am the Ghost of Christmas Past."

"Long Past?" inquired Scrooge: observant of its dwarfish stature.

"No. Your past."

You don't always need the Ghost of Christmas Past
to remind you of the good that has been in your life...
Sometimes all you need is reminders that you can hold in your hand.

     Once upon a time, there was a Little Girl who lived in an apartment at 301 Bradley St. She and her family lived in the downstairs apartment with her family. She loved her apartment. She loved the front room that overlooked the street. She loved watching her neighbors pass by. She loved her room where the closet was big enough to make a reading nook with a pillow and  small cardboard box to hold her favorites at close hand. It even had a light so the door could be shut allow her to get lost in the world of her books. She loved her kitchen that overlooked the backyard and had a "secret" counter that could fold down from the wall.

     But the thing she loved the most was sitting by the Christmas tree, watching the twinkling lights, and admiring each ornament. Some came from her great grandmother, some from her grandmother, and some were ones that her mother bought along the way. But by far the most magical thing on the tree was the star. It wasn't an ordinary star, just adorning the top of the tree, it was far more magical than that. The Star had a blue center with a white halo that lit up around it. But the magic was in that once the center bulb heated up the blue center part would slowly and most wonderfully spin around in the center. No one the Little Girl knew had one quite like it. She knew people with stars with or without lights, her grandmother had an angel on her tree, and her church had a beautiful glass finial on the top of theirs, but she had never seen anyone with anything quite like it. She looked forward to it coming out every year. It didn't matter what was under the tree as she sat in the dark admiring it, just seeing the lights, the familiar ornaments and the special Star topper was enough to give the Little Girl a sense of comfort that comes from knowing everything is right in the world. 

     While the magical Star had to be packed away one Christmas when she and her family lived with her grandparents, it was right back in its rightful place on top of the tree in their new apartment on Midland Ave two years later. There was one year in that apartment where she they tried a Christmas fireplace instead, but the family went back to having a tree the following year and left it up for a long time. Then her family had to move again, and everything was packed away and put into storage. That year while living with her grandparents, her Grandpa had an idea to cheer everyone up---get a live tree! Her Grandma wasn't quite as excited about the idea, but the Little Girl and her Grandpa went to the Christmas tree lot across the street from Green Hills and picked out a tree. Once they picked out the perfect tree, they came home and decorated it. While it didn't have the special blue Star, it did have Grandma's special angel and all was right in the world again.

     When her parents bought a house in the late spring of that year on Wiman Ave, the Little Girl, who wasn't quite so little anymore--definitely more of a Young Lady than a child, was excited that her family would have their own place. Shortly after moving in, she learned that there was a set of twins that lived next door and she could babysit them for extra spending money. Carefully she saved aside money for Christmas...the first Christmas in her new home. She could envision the presents she would buy for her family. But most of all she looked forward to seeing the Star back in its rightful place on her family's tree.

     Then one Saturday in early December, her Grandpa picked her up and took her once again to the Christmas Tree lot across from Green Hills. She found the perfect tree once again and her Grandpa loaded it up on the car. Once it was set up in the family living room, her mother pulled out the boxes of ornaments. All the familiar ornaments and lights came out of the box, but to the collective horror and sorrow of the Young Lady, her mother, and her sister the magical Star was broken. Somehow in storage it had gotten crushed and laid in pieces in the bottom of the box. While the rest of the tree was decorated, the tree had nothing at its top except some lights and garland. It just wasn't going to be the same that year after all.

     When the Young Lady sat watching the twinkling colorful lights on the tree, she had an idea---a simply splendid idea. She was going to go to the store with her babysitting money and surprise her mother with a new topper. With the plot hatched, she and her sister walked to Valley Plaza and went inside McCrory's to see what she could get. They had stars with no lights and stars with blinking lights. None of them seemed "right". Then on an upper shelf, the Young Lady saw her---a beautiful Angel that wasn't to frilly or fluffy, but just right with a thoughtful expression on her face.

     She and her sister decided this was the "one" and purchased her and brought her home. She and her sister walked quickly home with the surprise in hand. They handed the package to her mother telling her it was an early Christmas present. She looked inside the bag and smiled when she saw the angel. Her mother agreed it was "the" Angel, the perfect topper to grace the top of the tree. It wasn't going to be the same that year, it was going to be better!

     Now the Young Lady is grown with her own family. Now the Angel resides at her house. This year, while the Angel does not top the tree, it has a more important job--- telling  the Shepherds at the Nativity Creche under the tree the Good News. When she looks at it, it reminds her that while Christmas just wasn't the "same" that one year so long ago, she learned that was end of the world, just the beginning of a new one.