Is Your Tree still up?

I'm sitting in my front livingroom
yesterday afternoon
in my pj's...
and just then,
3 days AFTER Christmas,
I really just sat there
and enjoyed it...
all the lovely green boughs
and ribbons, ornaments,
little white twinkly lights
and the creamy white angel
blink
blink
blinking
at the top
and the deep burgundy velvet
tree skirt
with it's puffy white felt doves
circling the bottom.

The Season is nearly over
and it is a bittersweet notion
that this time next week
all of the holiday decorations
will be packed away
and life will be back to same ol
same ol.

I loved Christmas this year.
It was the best one we've had
in a long long time...
I love that my grown children
still want to come to my house
and spend their holidays together!

We laughed until our sides ached!
Hanging out in the kitchen,
baking, mixing, story-telling.
Whispering back and forth
about Christmas surprises--
oh, it was just a slice of
heavenly peace
for me.

I have dear friends
who take the tree down
even on Christmas day...
they are plum.wore.out.
and to take down the tree
signifies the end of the holiday stress
they've been feeling.
I get that.
I think I may have even done that a few times
in my life too.
"Thank goodness it's over, time to get back to real life!"

But this year was different.
It was sweet
with the many homecomings
and celebrating this new little baby in the family
really made it special.

So I'm not anxious to take the trees down
or the garland,
weaving in and out
and up and down the bannisters...
let them stay for a few more days
I say!
The magic of the season is not lost on me
this year.
We were filled with it
indeed smothered in it!
Yes, I was busy as ever--
shopping
cooking
cleaning--
but today,
I am still in my pj's
resting and reflecting,
with a full heart
not ready to go
"back to normal"
this year.

Once I went into a home
where the Christmas tree
was up in July!
The mother in the home was old
enough to be my mother,
and I stood there looking at the
fully-decorated tree
wondering why it was still up.
Then I looked around the rooms
and saw literally dozens of nativities
displayed everywhere.
Oh, I thought,
this has a deep meaning--
perhaps it is the message to keep
Christmas in your heart all year round?
So when the sweet woman came to greet me
I asked,
"How long has your Christmas tree been up?"
"Seven years.", she smiled.
"Wow, is that to remind you to keep the Christmas Spirit all year 'round?"
"Oh heavens, no!", she laughed. "Nobody wants to take it down!"

So what about YOU?
Is your tree still up?