A splash of colour in a bird bath is just the thing to draw the eye
“What if Christmas, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more!”
― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
While you might still run around to stores buying last-minute Christmas gifts, Dr Seuss knew a thing or two when he wrote ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’. Christmas is a busy time, but the feelings the season brings are so much bigger than the packages and bows. There is a feeling of love, hope and charity that permeates the air during Christmas. The interesting thing is that you can create warmth and joy with the help of just a few simple touches.
Just enough to bring warm feelings flooding in.
A welcome bit of sparkly light can be seen as you approach the courtyard
For Molly, the sight of coloured lights brings back memories of cheerful times. Christmas was always a time to bring family and friends together. While her husband worried that a tree was a fire hazard indoors, the outside of their farm was fair game to decorate. The better to welcome the many friends and neighbours who were regular visitors there. Of course, Molly couldn’t resist adding plenty of evergreen boughs and candles to the inside of her home as well, despite what Woody said.
Times have changed since Molly rushed frantically between the Mississauga salon where she worked long hours to ensure clients were coiffed for Christmas, and her home in Caledon where she played Sous Chef to her husband’s Chef. Everyone knew that at some point she would break down in emotional exhaustion, but even that memory brings a smile to Molly’s face today. The lost moments of life are cherished and at 80-years-old, Molly has many memories good and bad which bring comfort at Christmas, when her loved ones aren’t always as close at hand as they once were.
Greenery decorates a cherished wheelbarrow that Woody gave Molly so long ago
While she has long since retired and resides in London now, Molly hasn’t lost the spirit of Christmas. Her husband has passed and her daughter lives in the US, but a sparkle of colour is still enough to warm her, as she peers out from the Granny suite in her son’s basement on cold winter days. As she can no longer fly south due to her age, health and the increased travel premiums that come with it, those sparkles mean that much more.
Ribbons and bows add a touch of Christmas to Molly’s entrance
After last year’s harsh winter, this year Molly wanted to go beyond a simple tree on her son’s front porch. She contacted Christmas Decor London for help. She had seen the article about Christmas Decor in the Enterprise magazine in the London Free Press and contacted Anna Marie for an estimate. Unfortunately, to decorate the exterior of the whole house was beyond Molly’s limited retiree’s budget. Could she still afford a little something around her personal courtyard to brighten up her world though?
Anna Marie did her one better.
The Christmas spirit isn’t only reserved for the young. Right Molly!
Anna Marie showed up at Molly’s home a few days later with a couple of helper elves in tow. She’d had enough conversations with Molly to understand how much a few Christmas lights would mean to her. They added ribbons, balls, and Christmas lights in a variety of colours to Molly’s space.
When finished, they left with a smile and one request. No cash, cheque or visa payments were required. The decor was a Christmas gift from Christmas Decor London. All that was asked was that Molly buy a tree for the Veteran’s Memorial Parkway Community Group. That’s all. Molly had lost so many things in her life; her husband, her precious dog, and now the freedom to spend winters with her daughter down south. The gift of a little Christmas spirit was the least that Anna Marie could offer, and she gave it with a smile. I think Santa would approve.
What memories does Christmas bring up for you?
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