I Hate Colored Lights

  "I hate colored lights."  What? I thought.  I just spent all day pulling my holiday decor from storage and adorning our modest Christmas tree with strands of pink, green, yellow, blue and orange lights, and you not only dislike, but hate colored Christmas lights?   Geez, Scrooge.  Way to kill my Christmas spirit even if it's not even Thanksgiving, and even if I still have the Halloween decor displayed.  Don't you know, nothing says, "Welcome, Baby Jesus!", like hot pink lights? 

  My husband was just being honest admitting his distaste for my (lack of?) taste.  He didn't say it mean, or hatefully, just simply stated his thoughts.  I had two options:
A.  Be a witch and get my feelings hurt.
or
B.  Turn this into an opportunity to involve my husband in my favorite time of year.

  Normally, my first reaction would be 'A'.  'A', I am tired of you and you don't do anything for me, so I'm going with 'B'.  I'm glad I did.  ECM (My husband) lost both his mother, and is aunt last year during the holidays.  We also had our first child, Sweet P.  It was emotional, and not in a good way.  We found ourselves grieving, anxious, and stressed over the loss, and then over the splitting of holidays between our two families.  It was a disaster and left us both drained and in tears.  Unfortunately, this is how I will remember my daughters' first Christmas.

  Not this year.  After learning ECM's hatred of all things fun colored, I asked him what he thought would look nice.  "White lights...and a bigger tree."  A bigger tree?  This surprised me.  I have done the decorating for Christmas the last four years, and this is the first time he has ever said anything about our tree.  I just listened as he continued.  " Growing up, our tree had white lights.  And little doves.  There were red hearts, too.  We would also hang the ornaments we made at school on the tree."  It sounded so simple, and beautiful.  I want to make this tree happen for him this year, and every year God blesses us with.

  This is why I am choosing 'B'.  This is why I am taking half of my Friday to travel the 80+ miles to the nearest big city to buy my husband and daughter a new Christmas tree to symbolize our new family.  It will be my "Wild and Precious" tree.  This is why I am bowing out of the self inflicted holiday stress game, and having our own, three person Thanksgiving dinner, lovingly prepared by me this weekend.  (No turkey per EMC's request, but Elk meat.  ELK?  I now have a freezer full, thanks to a generous rancher who thought enough of my dear husband to share his kill with us.  One of the many perks of living in a small, rural town, might I add.)  This is why my holidays will not be filled with haves and wants, but filled with our new, family centered traditions and cookies.  Lots of Christmas cookies.

  I'll probably put the colored lights in Sweet P's room.  It may sound silly, but this season, I am thankful for the wisdom to choose 'B'.  I think I'll choose it more often.

-Scout