Things you find out by accident.

 It is funny how you go along in life, doing things because they are either a habit, or sometimes an unrecognized tradition, established over a period of time. We do things without understanding that sometimes to some one, a simple act has a much great meaning.  This was brought home this holiday season by Sandra and the simple task of ‘lighting the house’. 

This year I was behind in everything.  I was late to shop as not one of my children produced the much asked for Christmas list until the week before Christmas. It is amazing how quickly things ship from Amazon and how much money can be spent in 15 minutes on the internet. I was late with the tree as I wanted to beat my thrifyness of last year and my $3.00 tree.  Yes, this year it was FREE.  I was late in decorating and it took me forever to get every snowman placed, each nativity unwrapped and set up.  I struggled with hanging the garland and cursed the mini white lights when they didn’t work after I had them hung.  A feeling of uncoordinated lateness filled the house. Boxes sat in the hallway for days until I had been given the last reminder from Jeff, that they had been in our way, sitting for the much over exaggerated ‘weeks’.  I then became super efficient and cleaned everything up.  But there was one task that remained undone.  While the garland on the stairwell and the TV hutch were plugged in, I had not connected the extension cords to the garland over the den window or sliding door.

On Christmas morning Sandra arrived and we had our family Christmas morning gift exchange and as I readied the last few things before guests arrived for Brunch  - it happened. She was plugging in the lights for the stairs and above the TV and said to me ‘you have to light the house’.  I asked her ‘really, will anyone notice’.  She then told me that the first year she came home from college, she walked in the house and all the Christmas lights were on.

I guess Jeff had plugged them all in before she arrived, just for her, to welcome her home.  Now, all these years later she still feels as though she is ‘coming home for Christmas’ all over again, when she walks in the front door to be greeted by the smell of a real tree with it’s mini lights nestled deep in it’s branches. Mini white lights intertwined in green garland strung where ever I can put a length of garland.  Every strand of lights must be turned on and glowing, every light making our ordinary home just a little bit enchanted for the season . And I never knew how she felt until now.

So, no matter where we live, or how old I am, when she comes over for Christmas, I will always ‘light the house’ for her to welcome her … home for Christmas.