The Christmas Narwhal
Dear Readers, our Christmas decorations went up on 1st December this year, which is early even for us – we’re going to be away for a few days before the big day, so it felt as if we needed to do it now or it would be too late. It’s the first Christmas since Mum died that I’ve managed decorate the house without tears – Mum loved the festive season so much, and latterly Mum and Dad would spend the holidays with us, so getting the tree decorated was a welcome break from organising wheelchairs and the stairlift and the reclining chair for Dad and getting them registered with the local doctor. Mum died in 2018 and we had a few Christmases at Dad’s nursing home, before he died in March 2020. Since then, it’s just been my husband and I (touch of the Queen’s speech there), and although it’s been more restful and less anxiety-inducing, it’s also felt a little bit empty. But this year, after breaking my leg and having an ‘interesting’ time, I just feel very grateful for all the love I’ve been shown, and was able to really pay attention to all my ageing decorations and bits and pieces.
My tree is covered in animals. I’m very partial to the Christmas narwhal (above), and the Christmas brontosaurus…
This rather ragged robin has been with me for about forty years. No wonder he looks a bit shell-shocked.
The artificial Christmas tree is at least thirty years old, and every year bits drop off, but I’m sure it’s good for a few years yet.
The blue tit comes from the Wetlands Centre in Barnes…
This amazing creature came from an exhibition about Persepolis at the British Museum many moons ago…
And this spotty creature was made in South Africa, and was bought on my first ever trip to the continent when I was an IT training consultant back in the mists of time.
But these are my favourites. The cross-legged Santa Clauses belonged to Mum, and when we were children we loved to rearrange them to see if she’d notice.
But the snowman in the middle is my absolute favourite. He was our Christmas cake topper for years, and I inherited him from Mum. Last year two of the branches with the robins broke, and I was heart-broken. But I’d reckoned without the healing power of superglue, and so here he is, restored. I love his cheeky little face.
My tree is somewhat overburdened (and indeed has to be duct-taped to the floor because otherwise it will fall over) but I couldn’t possibly leave any of the decorations in the bag when it’s their only chance to see a bit of daylight. Not that I’m anthropomorphising or anything. I’m sure Mum would have done the same – she always found room for everyone and everything at this time of year, however tired or overwhelmed she felt.
So, Readers, is anyone out there popping up the Christmas tree, or are you all waiting for a bit? Do you have decorations that mean a lot to you? Sending a big hug to everyone out there who needs it at this time of year. I know it isn’t easy for many people.
I’m glad decorating your tree has brought you joy this year and thank you for sharing with us. We also put up our tree this weekend and like yours it’s covered in animals, mainly gifted to our children from their Grandma and Great Grandma over the years. It makes me laugh this menagerie of a tree and when I saw your photos I smiled. And I spotted a leaping reindeer in the background of one photo which I also have, I chose it one year after my family returned to the UK after living abroad. With very few decorations, my parents would take my sisters and I to the garden centre to choose something for the tree and that reindeer with the sparkly antlers was my choice.
Ah yes, our local garden centre is a great source of Christmas decorations, I’m sure that the leaping reindeer came from there!
Happy Christmas to you. It is always a thoughtful time for so many people. I confess that my tree isn’t up yet because I’m just too busy with work. The magic of Christmas has not descended yet but I am hopeful that it will.
Ah it’s early still to put the tree up, but I have a rather stressful trip to Canada coming up, so I wanted it to be all done before I went…
When my Scottish son arrives (and my Norwegian son has left), we will drive into the country to snip a seedling pine to decorate only a few days before Christmas. It usually gets so hot here that the needles start falling off before long. I need the tree to be looking cheerful for when my youngest grandchildren arrive after Christmas – having enjoyed a German Christmas in Cape Town, they come here for an English Christmas. Yes … some of the battered decorations date back to when my own children were little.
I can imagine the poor pine tree struggling a bit in South African temperatures…
I love Christmas, but it has to be a short burst, I quickly tire of it. So my tree won’t go up till after 18 December and I’ll be itching to take it down around the 27th! For that short period it will be very much enjoyed. I too have a random collection of animals, including a threadbare robin and chaffinch from my own childhood and a manatee given by my stepdaughter when she visited Florida. Also some splodgily painted butterflies and pine cones with glitter stuck on from my children’s primary school days. And a plastic Barack Obama who sits on the top of the tree. I honestly don’t remember how that tradition started. One year Barach couldn’t be found and my daughter put a Stella Artois can in his place, which we all thought very witty (perhaps it was the seasonal atmosphere gone to our heads).
A Christmas Manatee and Barack Obama! I’m coming to your house!
We got a new Christmas tree this year, so we actually put ours up two weekends ago! We have special ornaments too, particularly from trips to Rome and New York. I’ve got a British Museum ornament too – a turquoise felt Egyptian cat 🙂
I think I’ve got a red version of the British Museum Egyptian cat! And I’ve certainly got a blue hippopotamus from another of their exhibitions….
I love your Christmas decorations, especially the joyful snowman and the robin with the rather bemused expression. I’ve never seen a Christmas narwhal or a Christmas brontosaurus! My tree also has trouble standing upright, as like yours, it is rather heavily laden. There are lanterns with plastic flames dating from my childhood, and a jolly cast of characters from Christmases past and more recent, including a wooden reindeer, a knitted snowman and a band of miniature teddy bears silently playing brass instruments. My tree never comes down before Twelfth Night – it helps me to face the bleakness of January.
Right at the top of the tree is a rather sombre angel peering through unkempt knitted hair, which was made by my son in his first year at school. I miss his bright-eyed excitement, in the days when he used to help me decorate the tree – and I miss Mum and Dad, who made my own childhood Christmases so magical. Mum loved shopping for food and presents and filling every room with garlands and lights. For Dad, December was a whirl of Christmas concerts, and he taught my sister and me some of the traditional Cornish carols which I’ll be singing with our local pop-up Christmas choir over the next couple of weeks.
I love Christmas, although this year, I don’t know if we’ll have a tree, as I am laid up after foot surgery and occupying our tiny living room as I can’t get up stairs. I love how people have such memories attached to their collections. My MIL buys all new ornaments every year to make a designer themed tree. I can’t imagine! For me, that misses the whole point.
Every year, we have bought an ornament and like yours, ours are mostly animals. I have a narwhal as well, although mine is blown glass. I love the German mercury glass reindeer that was my grandmother’s. And of course, I have ornaments my son made and some that I made as a child too. One of my favorite ornaments is a copper and brass metal sea otter with beads strung round that we got one year at the Monterey Bay aquarium. Also a beautiful carved wooden rabbit from Tucson, AZ.
Sorry to hear about the foot surgery – how are you doing? And how I wish I’d bought a sea otter ornament when I was in Monterey a few years ago…
Christmas is such an emotional time, especially when our parents were such a big part of it. I love that you’re carrying on your Dad’s Cornish carol tradition….