baubles

Our Christmas decorations are stored in my Gran's old trunk. It weighs a ton and still has cruise liner stickers on it, from her travels back and forth to Canada. We are annually surprised at what's inside. We remember that we meant to clear stuff out before we packed it all away. Yet every year we keep tinsel, broken lights and scraps of wrapping paper

Every year, we argue about the correct way to decorate a Christmas tree. Lights or tinsel first. Baubles then lights? Lights, then tinsel then baubles? Who knows.

We don't argue that a Christmas tree should be chaotic. A riot of gaudy baubles, loved and treasured.

Since our son was born, we've added a new decoration every year. They are picked by him and when he sets up his own tree, we plan to give him all the baubles chosen over the years. At sixteen, there are now quite a few.

The first one was a star - embroidered and sequined. Beautiful. A turquoise bejeweled swirl was next - our toddler grabbed for a sparkly thing and we took it as a sign. The purple spring joined the following year.

Lego dominated our lives for a while. The lego bauble has never been opened and often drops from the tree because it's so heavy. Tastes became more subtle and wistful glass baubles have joined the collection.

The special baubles are displayed with our other treasures. Look at Mickey, so excited in 1999 by the approaching millennium, he's never stopped smiling.

Handmade decorations are strangely hardy. This snow-skier always makes me smile - that halved ear bud as a ski pole is ingenious. Ribbons, pegs and ear buds, and I'm guessing an awful lot of adult supervision at the after school club.

Then there are the knitted Santas. They stand alone, together, three of them. The elderly knitters at the cat fair couldn't resist our toddler and kept giving him these little lovelies.

They pop up in odd places and are now teenagers themselves. They bring us festive cheer.

Merry Christmas.