A Military Family's Christmas Tree
"Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall." ~Larry Wilde, The Merry Book of Christmas
Every year, shortly after the Thanksgiving dishes have been put away, we put up our Christmas Tree. Unearthing our tree and it's decorations is like a geological find for our family. All of the ornament's have a significance that ties to our military travels and the friendships that we have made.
Most military tree's are like this. There may be an abundance of flags or red white and blue. We have a collection of Santa's in camouflage holding flags or flying helicopters. There are eagles with flags because the eagle is the symbol of our country and quietly we military families count on the wings of these eagles to bring our loved ones home when they are away. There are angels, a lot of angels, because we need those too.
Our tree is a map of where we have been. The gold star ornament that is too delicate to be anywhere but at the top of the tree was given to Vic from a General he worked for. There are the vibrant fabric wrapped boxes from Korea. One with the colors of the Korean flag, and one with the American flag colors. I can remember the little shop in Itaewon, Seoul where I bought them. There are the ornaments that were given to us at Christmas party swaps in Virginia and Kansas. The glass blown ornaments are from Nurnberg, Germany. The pottery ornaments are from Poland, bought on a shopping trip with a dear friend. Interspersed are the Baby's first Christmas ornaments which conjure up the three homes were we brought new children into this world; Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Seoul, South Korea and Ft Lee, Virginia. All of this regalia is topped off by an angel that was bought at the PX.
I know our children look forward to Christmas Day and the beautiful presents that will be under the tree. As for me, the presents are the ornaments that are on the tree and the memories of how they came to be there. It truly is a wonderful life.
Every year, shortly after the Thanksgiving dishes have been put away, we put up our Christmas Tree. Unearthing our tree and it's decorations is like a geological find for our family. All of the ornament's have a significance that ties to our military travels and the friendships that we have made.
Most military tree's are like this. There may be an abundance of flags or red white and blue. We have a collection of Santa's in camouflage holding flags or flying helicopters. There are eagles with flags because the eagle is the symbol of our country and quietly we military families count on the wings of these eagles to bring our loved ones home when they are away. There are angels, a lot of angels, because we need those too.
Our tree is a map of where we have been. The gold star ornament that is too delicate to be anywhere but at the top of the tree was given to Vic from a General he worked for. There are the vibrant fabric wrapped boxes from Korea. One with the colors of the Korean flag, and one with the American flag colors. I can remember the little shop in Itaewon, Seoul where I bought them. There are the ornaments that were given to us at Christmas party swaps in Virginia and Kansas. The glass blown ornaments are from Nurnberg, Germany. The pottery ornaments are from Poland, bought on a shopping trip with a dear friend. Interspersed are the Baby's first Christmas ornaments which conjure up the three homes were we brought new children into this world; Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Seoul, South Korea and Ft Lee, Virginia. All of this regalia is topped off by an angel that was bought at the PX.
I know our children look forward to Christmas Day and the beautiful presents that will be under the tree. As for me, the presents are the ornaments that are on the tree and the memories of how they came to be there. It truly is a wonderful life.
Our tree has many of the same red, white and blue ornaments and camoflagued Santas, and many very similar memories. After 29 years and 15 PCS moves, we have collected Christmas memories from around the world. I bet we have the same Korean and American ornaments from the same shop in Itaewon. All these memories decorate our 9' tall "theme tree". Thank you for your wonderful article for it tells a story that many of your fellow Army families share.
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