By Kayla Dean

This is our family Christmas tree.

Every year, my brother and I pick a weekend to bring the kids over and help put up our mother’s tree. When we were young children, my brother and I couldn’t wait to put up the Christmas tree. Then, the tree was covered in glass and metallic ornaments, each marked with the year it was purchased, and each year, my family joined the flocks of other Wal-Mart patrons to pick out that year’s newest ornament.
One year, however, in my brother’s excitement to decorate the tree, he hastily opened a box and reached in to pull out the tree’s first ornament of the year only to cut his hand on a broken glass ornament. As soon as my grandmother found out, she said, “Never again,” and thus, our tradition of homemade ornaments began.

My grandmother was the queen of plastic-craft, and she promptly sent over boxes upon boxes of plastic-craft doves, mail boxes, crosses, and candy-canes. She sent these boxes to all of our cousins as well.

At first, we all felt a bit overwhelmed by all the ornaments. Many of the family viewed them as “tacky” and soon they became known among the cousins as “Granny baskets.” Many of my older cousins thought they were “too cool” for Granny baskets, and either boxed them up or passed them on to others in the family. Even those who appreciated them became overwhelmed by them; she sent so many.
Now, that she is gone, however, we view the ornaments as a way to keep her memory alive and keep her apart of Christmas for our children who never got the opportunity to meet her.

Over the years, we’ve added to the ornament collection. My grandfather’s ornament, crafted out of a canning lid and some ribbon, was one of the first to be added to our tree.

And, of course, the children get involved as well. Today, the tree dons ornaments made by four generations with my son’s Santa hand-print ornament being added this year.

Yet my favorite ornaments by far are my grandmother’s plastic-craft candles which she made to be a puzzle for the children. Inside, there is a message to remind us of the true reason for the season.

Still, every year, we will have at least one person make a comment about our tree, usually something to the effect of: “Oh, why don’t you try to color coordinate your tree this year. I hear pink and brown are in.” We’ve grown used to such responses to the tree as we realize that these spectators may only be trying to help; they just don’t see the tree in the same way that we do. When my family looks at the tree, we see our heritage, and we are flooded with the warm memories of my grandmother and all those hours spent hand-crafting those ornaments, filling each with her love and prayers. We remember continuing her tradition, those afternoons gathered around the dining room table with my mother making ornaments together. And if our guests can’t see that, at least they can tell how tall the kids are by the amount ornaments on the lower branches.

Kayla I. Shown-Dean has published her first novel, Muted. She is also a blogger and regular contributor to shortfictionbreak.com.
Kayla is also a member of White County Creative Writers, and she attends the annual Writer’s Retreat at the Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum.
In addition to writing, Kayla has a full-time job at a local university, and she teaches English part-time as an adjunct. She lives with her husband and son, who is a preschooler. When she has free time, Kayla enjoys reading, writing, blogging, painting, drawing, and singing.