January 9, 2015

Taking down the Christmas tree is never as much joy as putting it up. The party is over, the candles are snuffed out, and now the long winter is here. As I undressed the tree on 12th Night, I told the tree that it would be serving a new purpose outdoors, providing some of its branches as mulch under the azaleas and rhododendron, and sharing the rest of its branches and trunk as shelter for the small birds against the bitter cold. I don’t know if the tree felt better, but I did. I played the new Christmas CD that my brother had sent me as a gift, looked at the new fallen snow outside, and gently undressed the tree.

Then there was the problem of getting the eight-foot tree out of my house by myself. I left that job until today. Fortunately there are no stairs here, and it is not far from my living room to the back door, but this is a large and heavy tree. Bill used to unscrew the tree stand from the tree, with me helping to keep it upright while he did that job. Then he would pull the tree out of the stand and take the trunk end, and I would seize the top. Together we would carry it out.

My mother told me stories of how they used to dance the Christmas tree out of the house, carrying it from room to room. Probably they did not keep the tree in the house for two or three weeks, and there were not as many dry needles to drop. Bill and I never tried dancing the tree out, and I was not going to start now.

I found these instructions on-line. Get a bucket, a turkey baster, old rags, a very large sheet, and binder clips. Get down on the floor and empty the tree stand using the turkey baster. Move the furniture so you will have a clear space to drop the tree, and clear the path to the door. Spread the old sheet on the floor, at an angle so that the trunk will be pointing toward the exit.  Now grab the tree and pull it down, stand and all, with the trunk end pointing toward the exit. Oops! There is still water in the stand and now the sheet and the rug underneath are flooded. Run and get the biggest beach towels you can find and sop up the water! Note to self: next year, lay down a plastic tablecloth first, then a layer of beach towels, and use an old sheet, not one of your new ones. As my mother used to say, live and learn. Take the clips and bundle the tree up in the sheet as well as you can. Leave the tree stand attached.

Now drag the tree down the hall and out the door. Except for the wet area on the rug, there is not much mess, and the tree is outside on my patio where the juncos and chickadees are exploring its shelter.