Holidays: To tree or not to tree?

I voted and will be back to comment tomorrow.

 

I agree with you genuinegirly, much of the machinations we go through are traditions or, 'we're doing <insert activity> because we always did'--no real reason--just 'because'.
I grew up in a household with a mom who was an orphan in her childhood and so later in life embraced all she had missed--and oh, so much more. She always used an artificial tree though, which would address your comment about the expense of repeatedly chopping down evergreens. We used the same damn ugly, fake tree for a decade or more.

In my mind, Christmas is for children and now that mine are (technically) adults, for the first year ever we are not having a tree, we are dispensing with Christmas altogether and going to Disneyland (a trip three years in the planning). One week of Christmas decorations is all I care to see.

For most of my youngest son's life he and his dad went and picked out a fresh tree and the little guy really dug it--so my response would be we did it mostly for him--right through last year when the 'little guy' was 6'4".

(Tree) ornaments are another matter. For many years I took the kids shopping for a single ornament of their choice every season and again, it was something we enjoyed, something to do together as a family--a tradition, if you will. They got older and that stopped too. I am a bit sentimental about the kid-made ornaments though--I like opening them each year and getting nostalgic.

I think I felt more pressure to follow tradition when I was obligated to try and be a 'good mom,' but the expense and the pressure were always something that came with the territory (especially during the 8 years I was a single parent) and I'm really glad to have dispensed with that this year. (I hosted Thanksgiving instead.)

I never thought anything when I stepped into my tree-less Jewish friend's home--so I suppose I wouldn't think much in anyone's home, sans tree.
Trees are so impractical and potentially dangerous. When we had cats they would climb in the tree and knock it over. I always worried about the lights setting something on fire if we didn't pick it all back up quickly enough.

I like your idea of creatively decorating using tree substitutes. A little imagination can go a long way if you don't want to commit to the big production of a tree but you do want to add some festiveness to your surroundings.

Finally, I'm with you on the attractiveness of a tropical Christmas. I've had many cold Christmases; if I never had another one that would be OK by me.

 

Did it every year. The whole shebang. Tree, lights outside, decorating inside. For the kids.

It's just Alistair and I now. We probably would have passed on a tree this year but his daughter is coming in from Australia with her boyfriend for the holidays and we both agreed that a bit of a festiveness would be appropriate.

We bought a small, inexpensive 3 foot potted tree today that we can replant. Decorated it with a few ornaments we had fun picking out together at the Christmas shop. An evergreen and holly wreath for the front door. We'll exchange a modest gift with each other and our kids. Christmas cards for friends and extended family.

Here it is minus a garland of holly berries I will be stringing myself as soon as I go out and collect them.

 

Besides the fact that keeping a real tree in your living room is a major pain in the ass (my dad & stepmom did that one year--we were still finding pine needles with our feet the next July), I also am not cool with the idea of chopping down a tree just to throw it away a few weeks later.

So, yes, we have a tree, but it's artificial. When I had cats, they climbed it...and occasionally knocked it over. The dogs pretty much leave it alone, but I don't put presents underneath, since Leia likes to rip up paper. I'm agnostic, so there's no religious significance, I just think it looks pretty and festive. I don't put the tree up til the 15th or so, and it comes down shortly after New Year's Day--whenever I have time, really.

When ZombieSquirrel and I lived together, we put up a Christmas tree and a menorah. That was pretty awesome.

My mom and stepdad stopped putting up decorations for a while. Mom has a small tabletop tree that she'll put out if I come home for the holidays, but other than that, no tree. In the last couple years, though, they've gotten more into the tropical-themed Christmas stuff, and I kinda love it. They decorate fake palm trees, and I think there's a Santa wearing a Hawaiian shirt. Then again, they've slowly redecorated the house to be more beach/nautical themed, so the decorations blend in nicely.



Edit: Oooh, I do like the potted tree that you can replant. That's pretty kickass.

 

For me, the tree is a throwback to the seasonal festival that pre-dates Christmas and is all about recognising the passing of the seasons.

I like that, so I like a tree - or at least some pagan furnishings (e.g. mistletoe). Lately, I get a tree in a pot, as we did this year (and as Jonie posted).

 

Understand that - as a non-Christian it doesn't bother me. In fact, I like the pagan-ness (f such a word exists).

I just enjoy the tradition and, as Snowy reminded me, the smell and the memories (often held in old decorations).

Mind you, they could equally go on a large houseplant! I'd miss the smell, though.

I see no real point in a plastic tree. It doesn't do anything for me.

 

as a non-christian, ive never seen the need to have a tree. we celebrate ramadan and exchange gifts during our festivities, and Ive been content with not having to shove my own beliefs down peoples throats, and i appreciate not having christmas shoved down mine.

seeing that many of the beliefs during christmas (including the tree) are actually pagan, it makes me question why its celebrated at all. I have no issue with christmas, in fact we attend chistmas dinner at some of our friends places every year. It is a wonderful time of year and wish people were more joyful during the other times.

if i did celebrate christmasmas, i would probably have a small potplant about 3 to 5ft tall and wouldnt see the need to cut another tree down.

 

I'm allergic to pine trees, so my family stopped getting real trees when I was a kid.

I have a fake palm tree with lights on it. Although, the white led lights stay on it year round... Imagining I was here:

 

I am a christian, So I've always had a tree, But I do have quite a few non-christian friends that put up trees.

 

I don't put up a tree of my own in my school apartment. One year, I did - it was a teeny tree, but I was living alone and it was my way to make my apartment feel more like "home" even though I was going home for the holidays. When I lived in VA, my mother insisted on sending me a tree when I didn't want to buy one but couldn't come home for Christmas. My cats appreciated it, at least, and it did help me feel slightly less disconnected from the season.

Since my father passed away, decorating for the season at my mom's house is always a point of contention. My mother and I tend not to want to put in the effort, as it brings up some really sad memories - my father was always the one who put up the tree and I would usually decorate it while he put tinsel, garland, and other Christmas ornaments up all over the house. Now that he is gone, the tree is a reminder of that and we all have a hard time jump starting that "spirit" to put it up (we always have a fake tree), let alone decorate the rest of the house. It just doesn't feel the same without him. I missed his last Christmas, too (I was living in VA), and sometimes I hate myself for not making the effort or investment to go home that year.

Last year, though, was my nephew's first Christmas and my sister insisted that we decorate for that, so we did. I'm not sure what will happen this year, as I won't be able to go home until a few days before Christmas. I'm not sure if they'll have decorated by then, or if I will have to bring the spirit with me and get it done.

 

My fake tree is the 5' type I think. It sat in the box all of last year and this year changed circumstances mean that the same box is taking up precious space rather than a corner of a storage shed. The pawn shop didn't want it so it will be heading to the local thrift shop as a donation very soon; vehicle troubles have thrown a crimp in certain plans.

 

Tradition, fond memories, putting it up as a family activity, but to be quite honest. I like them.

 

No tree. I have three cats and I hate dealing with the needles. Fake trees feel pointless to me because part of the tree tradition is that amazing smell of the tree itself. But it feels wasteful to buy a real tree... The size we'd need for our ceiling costs well over $125. And it feels cruel to the tree. And, did I mention the three cats? The old man single-handedly took out my last tree seven years ago... Five times in two weeks.

It's not the Christmas tradition to me... This will be the first time we've done Christmas with anyone is more than five years. And for four years before that, we did Christmas in January because of issues with coordinating travel within my family. Other than just going to a friend's house for dinner and whiskey last year. The tradition used to be the music, the food, the family, etc. If I don't have that, why a tree?