Ask anyone you know what their favorite part about the winter holidays are and I’m sure every person will give you a different answer. Some will gush about all the fattening food, from the Thanksgiving turkey to the mountains of Christmas cookies. Some will talk about the Christmas music that blares through their radios during a long car ride. Some will even say that they love the cold winter weather (which for that I will slightly judge you for because the snow and I just don’t see eye to eye). Ask me and I’ll go on a full blown rant about how the decorations are by far the best part about the holidays. Kind of like what I’m about to do now.
I grew up in a household that is full of traditions, my favorite being our Christmas decorations. We put them up the day after Black Friday every single year and it is no small undertaking. Just putting the ornaments on our tree alone took three hours to complete this year. Every photo on the shelf is replaced, every throw pillow is swapped out and every painting on the wall is wrapped to look like a present you’d find under the tree on Christmas morning. The running joke I have about my family living in the middle of Santa’s workshop still stands to this day.
Our outside decorations are no different. In past years our yard was so packed with Christmas lights, blow molds and moving characters that it landed us a picture in the local newspaper. As the years have gone on, my parents decided to decrease the amount of decorations that we put outside, but it still never fails to make our neighbors’ houses look like they belong to the Grinch.
Growing up with all of the cheesy decorations definitely translated to the way I decorate my dorm here at Monmouth. In past years, my roommates and I have made a large paper Christmas tree that we displayed on the wall of our common room in Beechwood or have even gone as far as to bring a four foot Christmas tree to Maplewood last year. For my dorm room, I bring all the decorations from home that I normally put up in my bedroom. Some things my grandma made like my tissue box cover that looks like a present and others are store bought trinkets like my color changing snowman.
It’s not just my personal decorations that make decorations my favorite part of the holidays. Imagine walking into a store in December and not seeing red and green tinsel strung up everywhere. It’s unthinkable. I love the feel of Christmas that those colors bring to the public. I love walking down the street and seeing giant snowflake lights hanging from street lamps. It just makes me more excited for Christmas when I see all the lights and colors being displayed just about everywhere you look. Have you seen Wilson Hall decorated for Christmas? Enough said.
Christmas decorations are absolutely my favorite part of the holiday season. You can give me all the cookies, Christmas carols and snow that you want. I’ll always choose the lights.
