Earlier
this month I went to the basement, rummaged through the storage tubs, and
decided how many decorations to scatter about the house. In the past few years,
the tubs have been moved around due to some plumbing issues, and I often find my
decorations right after the holiday.
As
I rode the chairlift from the basement, I placed nutcrackers on the shelf next
to the stairway. I was a little puzzled as to why I only had three of the four
Wizard of Oz nutcrackers. The cowardly lion had apparently gone missing.
I
continued to carry up ornaments, the table centerpiece, and various other
decorations. I placed the centerpiece on the table and decided I needed to
rest.
That
evening, Harold called from the hall at the head of the stairs, “There’s a dead
mouse on the floor.”
I
rushed to see the “mouse” and told him, “That’s not a mouse, it’s a sprig off
the dining table centerpiece.” OK, it was dark in the hallway, but really? I
know he has trouble seeing, but the mouse would have had to be dead for a long
time to turn green.
Later,
we decided to begin by decorating the artificial tree that stands in the corner
of the living room. Harold handed me the ornaments, and I placed them on the
tree.
We
leave lights on the “tree” year round and through the foliage, I sometimes miss
ornaments. I found an ornament toward the back of the tree. “Oh, look, I said,
here’s the Dalmatian angel I bought you when your dog died.”
I
only brought up one fiber optic Christmas tree and it required no ornaments. I
usually put up the silver Christmas tree that belonged to Harold’s mom and the
small tree that was in Jim’s room at the nursing home.
Often,
when I walked into Jim’s room, he would be gazing at the Christmas tree. I only
put up a tree in Jim’s room and never went overboard with decorating. I’d
learned my lesson the last time, I decorated when Jim lived at home. I was
removing framed family photos from the shelves in the living room so I could put
up Christmas decorations. I turned my back and Jim replaced the photos where
they belonged. That’s when I realized that he didn’t want the familiar family
photos replaced with the bright and shiny decorations.
I
have so many nutcrackers that I haven’t been putting up all of them. Last
Christmas I placed nutcrackers on the landing shelf on the west side of the
house. I usually later replace them with snowmen and in February show off my
elephant collection. Well, I have a hard time on those stairs because they
don’t have a stairlift. About October, I thought I really should take down
those nutcrackers…but since it was nearing the Christmas season again, I just
left them.
I
happened to think that maybe that’s where that cowardly lion was, but I looked
them over and he wasn’t there. Another trip to the basement, and I found
another group of nutcrackers. As I placed them on the shelf, I saw the mouse
king. Hmmm, I thought I’d already placed him on the shelf. I took a closer look
at the “mouse king” and discovered it was the missing Wizard of Oz lion. Guess
Harold isn’t the only one that needs new glasses.
The
house looks festive, without being overdone, and I enjoy being in the living
room at night with the soft glow of the Christmas lights. When I walk by, I
always touch the Angel Dog for luck. It may not work, but at least it doesn’t
hurt anything.
Copyright © Dec 2023 by L.S. Fisher
http://earlyonset.blogspot.com
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