Today is the start of December. Around base Christmas trees are going up. They put a big one up outside last week. Sometime this coming week they are going to have a tree lighting ceremony/party during which you can get your picture taken with Santa and the Christmas camel. I didn’t even know there was a Christmas camel. Move over, Rudolph.
They also have several inside the Nex (Navy Exchange–a store)/food court building. Another was set up but undecorated as yet. So it’s definitely looking like Christmas around here, at least on base. I have a small tree, but won’t set it up until later. I haven’t decided when exactly.
When I was a kid my family didn’t have a set date on which we set up our tree. But it was always a couple of weeks at least before Christmas. And then we took it down either before New Year’s Day or right after. We never left it up in January. My Mom told me once that my Dad’s Mom left their tree up until February. They both thought that was too long.
Me, I don’t know how long I’ll leave my tree up. I’ve always thought the season ended with Epiphany on January 6, The Feast of the Wise Men. This is also when the Orthodox church celebrates Christmas, and the end of the “Twelve Days of Christmas” as immortalized in the song (it starts on Christmas Day). I’ve always liked the idea of leaving the tree up until January 6 because then you include all the varieties of Christianity and I like the idea of celebrating the day the wise men came. But on the other hand, you have New Year’s in-between, a holiday that has nothing to do with Christmas, and in the U.S. at least, signals that the holiday season is over. And in the U.S. with Christmas decorations hitting stores earlier and earlier and the season officially kicking off the day after Thanksgiving and all the massive marketing done during that month, I think most people are ready for the season to be over by December 25 and don’t want to drag it out to January 6.
So what do you think? When do you set up your Christmas tree? And how long do you leave it up? And do you have any traditions concerning setting up the tree? Leave a comment and tell me what you think.